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Railways Bill: HL Bill 25 of 2026–27

Approximate read time: 38 minutes

The Railways Bill would put into effect parts of the government’s plan to bring the railways into public ownership, a manifesto commitment. Among other things, the bill would:

• establish Great British Railways (GBR), a new publicly owned body that would manage infrastructure, run passenger services and set fares
• give new powers to the Passengers’ Council, allowing it to investigate complaints, enforce improvement plans, and set service standards
• create a new access regime, in which GBR would manage access to its infrastructure
• require the government to publish a long-term rail strategy and set a target for increasing rail freight

This briefing provides background to the policy and a list of key documents, before giving an overview of the main elements of the bill and detail of its provisions clause-by-clause. It then provides a summary of the scrutiny the bill received in the House of Commons and a selection of reactions to the bill from different groups including industry, unions and consumer groups.

The bill is scheduled to have its second reading in the House of Lords on 7 July 2026.