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Rail Privatisation

Volume 268: debated on Tuesday 12 December 1995

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To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will show for all consultants and other outside organisations or individuals currently or previously employed by his Department for advice or assistance in rail privatisation (a) the name of the consultancy, organisation or individual, (b) the length of the contract offered to each consultancy, organisation or individual, (c) the total amount inclusive of VAT paid to date to each consultancy, organisation or individual and (d) the services required by his Department from each consultancy, organisation or individual; and if he will make a statement. [270]

[pursuant to his reply, 22 November 1995, c. 142–43]: Information about payments to individual contractors is commercially confidential.

Payments made to date to consultants currently or previously employed by the Department total £35.4 million.

Consultants currently employed by the Department on rail privatisation are:

Consultants

Linklaters and PainesLegal advice
FreshfieldsLegal advice
Samuel MontaguMerchant Banking
HambrosMerchant Banking
SBC WarburgMerchant Banking
Merrill LynchMerchant Banking
KPMG Peat MarwickAccountancy and Taxation
Ernst and YoungAccountancy
Price WaterhouseAccountancy
ShandwickMarketing
GreshamMarketing
Dewe RogersonMarketing
Ernst and YoungInformation Systems
Richard EllisProperty matters
SedgwickInsurance
BrodiesAdvice on Scots law
Travers MorganSpecialist advice on BRIS contract pricing
Ernst and YoungCorporate finance advice on BRIS contract pricing
Mercer ManagementFreight
PA Consulting GroupInformation Systems
Touche RossReporting consultants
Solid SolutionsRetail offer advisers
Sherman and SterlingUS lawyers
Bruce Bower Assoc.Financial adviser
K. BenceEngineering adviser

Contractors employed by the Department on rail privatisation to provide sercvices other than consultancy advice are:

Consultants

WRC (via C01)Advertising agency
Sampson TyrrellDesign company
Royal Bank of ScotlandReceiving/custodian bank
Mail Marketing (Bristol) LtdMailing house
Database Group LtdDatabase manager
Royal MailPostal services
Lloyds Bank RegistrarsDatabase provider
Bowne InternationalPrinters
Touche RossFraud audit

Contractors employed by the Department on rail privatisation are:

Consultants

Arthur D. LittleResearch
Coopers and LybrandAccess and access charging
Norman BroadbentRecruitment
Putnham Hayes and BartlettAccess and access charging
Debenham Tewson and ChinnocksProperty matters
NERARegulatory matters
Deloitte Haskins and SellsIndustry structure

Contracts for consultancy advice are normally offered on an on-going basis with provision for the Department to terminate the contract.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list those consultants, outside organisations and individuals employed to date by his Department to assist with the franchising of ScotRail. [5507]

No advisers have been appointed to assist exclusively with the franchising of ScotRail, but a number of advisers have been appointed to assist on a range of issues relating to rail privatisation. I refer the hon. Member to the reply that I gave to the hon. Member for Hampstead and Highgate (Ms Jackson) on earlier today.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what consultations he has had with the Director General of the Office of Rail Franchise Regulation concerning issues of competition relevant to the preferred bidder status of the Western Region management team and First Bus for the Great Western passenger rail franchise and the dominant supplier position of First Bus in bus transport on the Cardiff-Swansea express bus route; and if he will make a statement. [5418]

[holding answer 11 December 1995]: Any competition issues raised by a rail franchise bid are for the franchising director, the Rail Regulator and the Director General of Fair Trading. My Department has been involved in discussions of a general nature.The Railways Act 1993 confers on the Rail Regulator the functions of the Director General of Fair Trading with respect to any monopoly situation or anti-competitive practice relating to the supply of railway services. Qualifying mergers are investigated by the Office of Fair Trading under the Fair Trading Act 1973.