Policy paper

Railways Bill

Fact sheets and links to information relating to the Railways Bill.

• From: Department for Transport
• Published: 5 November 2025
• Last updated: 16 June 2026 — See all updates

Documents

Railways Bill factsheet: introducing and designing Great British Railways

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Railways Bill introduction: British Sign Language (BSL) version

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Railways Bill factsheet: holding Great British Railways to account

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Railways Bill factsheet: the Long-Term Rail Strategy

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Railways Bill factsheet: rail freight

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Railways Bill factsheet: the passenger watchdog

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Railways Bill factsheet: accessibility

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Railways Bill factsheet: fares

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Railways Bill factsheet: devolved and local government

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Railways Bill factsheet: tickets and retail

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Railways Bill factsheet: how the government plans to fund GBR

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Railways Bill factsheet: making best use of the rail network

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Railways Bill: environment statement

PDF, 136 KB, 1 page

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Railways Bill: European Convention on Human Rights statement

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Details

The Railways Bill establishes Great British Railways (GBR), a new publicly owned body to be the directing mind for Britain’s rail network. GBR will bring together track and train to eliminate fragmentation, simplify fares and ticketing and improve accountability.

The documents on this page provide information about the Railways Bill, which was introduced to the House of Commons on 5 November 2025 and to the House of Lords on 11 June 2026.

The factsheets explain measures in the Railways Bill, why they are needed and what impact they will have.

Railways Bill policies

• Railways Bill: Great British Railways licence and the accountability framework
• A railway fit for Britain’s future: government response
• Our roadmap to an accessible railway
• Journey to Great British Railways: policy publication timetable

Railways Bill in Parliament

• Third reading of the Railways Bill
• Railways Bill
• Railways Bill explanatory notes
• Railways Bill impact assessment
• Railways Bill equalities impact assessment
• Railways Bill delegated powers memorandum
• Railways Bill: Memorandum on European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR)
• Railways Bill: Supplementary ECHR memorandum

Railways Bill memoranda of understanding

• Railways Bill: Memorandum of Understanding between Secretary of State and Welsh Ministers
• Railways Bill: Framework for a memorandum of understanding between the Secretary of State and Scottish Ministers

Published 5 November 2025

Last updated 16 June 2026 — Show all updates

1. 16 June 2026

   Updated to reflect the Railways Bill being introduced to the House of Lords.

2. 18 May 2026

   The Railways Bill was introduced on 5 November 2025 and reintroduced in the House of Commons on 14 May 2026.

3. 5 November 2025

   First published.