To ask the Secretary of State for Transport with reference to the answer of 3 November 2008, Official Report, column 44W, on DfT Rail: secondment, whether the one person seconded from a train operating company to work in DfT Rail was given (a) line management responsibility for civil servants, (b) the right to take disciplinary action against civil servants and (c) the right to complete annual performance reports on civil servants. (244458)

Individuals seconded into the Department for Transport (DfT) are expected to work on the same basis as civil servants. Their duties are agreed with their line manager and, where line management is part of the role, it will include responsibility for discipline and performance management of civil servants. The person seconded from a train operating company to Department for Transport (DfT) Rail was given the normal duties and responsibilities of a civil servant for the period of the secondment.