SNP ministers ‘shif t goalposts for ScotRail’
Anger as train delay rules are relaxed
MINIsTERs have been accused of ‘shifting the goalposts’ f or s cotRail b y lowering k ey p erformance targets.
Transport scotland has reduced the targets written into the scotRail franchise held by Dutch firm abellio.
It m eans t he f irm c an g et a way with more of its trains being delayed without risking losing its contract to operateservices.
Under its original agreement with sNP ministers, abellio would be in breach of the franchise if any less than 88.18 per cent o f t rains a re m ore t han f ive minutes late over the course of a year.
But Transport scotland yesterday confirmed that this breach level has now been lowered by one percentage point, to 87.18 per cent.
The revelation came less than 24 hours after newly published figures showed only 88 per cent of t rains a rrived w ithin f ive m inutes of the timetabled arrival time in the latest period.
Ministers a re n ow b eing u rged to give an urgent statement to MsPs explaining why the scottish Government has allowed the target to be changed.
scottish Labour transport spokesman Colin smyth said: ‘These are astounding revelations. scotRail should have breacheditsfranchiseagreement, b ut n ow w e l earn t hat t he sNP has shifted the goalposts. It i s u nacceptable t o h ave s ecret agreements between sNP ministers and rail bosses designed to dupe passengers and maintain a failing franchise.
‘Transport secretary Michael Matheson is no longer just a cheerleader f or p rivatisation, h e seems to be manipulating arrangements behind the scenes to protect it and failing to e ven m ention i t i n p arliament when questioned about the franchise.’
Transport s cotland y esterday confirmed that its breach level has been reduced by a further one percentage point due to Network Rail ‘infrastructure issues’ a nd t he i mpact t he t imetabling crisis in England has had on cross-Border services.
Manuel Cortes, general secretary of the Transport salaried staffs’ association, said: ‘This is absolutely disgraceful. Franchise targets exist to ensure passengers and taxpayers are getting value for money.
‘scotRail’s failure to reach those targets, despite not just one but two improvement plans, is a very clear indication that abellio is failing to deliver value for money. This is just a face-saving exercise for abellio and the sNP.
‘a braver politician would put their hands up, admit they got it wrong, and bring scotRail back i mmediately i nto t he p ublic s ector, b ut M atheson i s w edded to the idea of privatisation and s eems w illing t o e ngage i n a cover-up of scotRail failures rather than hold abellio accountable.’
a T ransport s cotland s pokesman said: ‘any notion the goalposts have been shifted is fundamentally wrong.
‘The allowances made are defined in the franchise agreement, and recognise the significant performance impacts as a result of Network Rail’s infrastructure issues in scotland in recent months.’