Periodic review 2018 (PR18) initial consultation and conclusions

Consultation status
Conclusions published
Date of publication
Closing date
Body

In May 2016, we published our first major consultation on the 2018 periodic review (PR18). PR18 would determine Network Rail Infrastructure Limited’s (Network Rail’s) outputs and funding in control period 6 (CP6, which will run from 1 April 2019 to 31 March 2024). PR18 would feed through into the service passengers and freight customers receive and, together with taxpayers, ultimately pay for.

The consultation sought views on:

  • the context in which we were undertaking the review;
  • how PR18 could support better outcomes for passengers, freight customers and taxpayers;
  • our proposed priorities and objectives and the broad scope of the review;
  • our proposed high-level approach to PR18 and the potential policy framework that could support this; and
  • the proposed process for PR18 and how we proposed to engage with stakeholders, to enable them to plan their involvement.

Working papers supporting the initial consultation

Following publication of this consultation document, we published five working papers to support the development of detailed policy. More information on these is available below:

Responses to our initial consultation

We received 59 responses to our initial consultation from a wide range of stakeholders. We are grateful to all those who responded. The responses are redacted where appropriate.

Responses to our initial consultation

Conclusions and next steps

Following careful review of the consultation responses and the valuable engagement we had with stakeholders over the summer, in November 2016 we published our conclusions on our initial consultation. Among other things, these confirmed our plans to regulate Network Rail increasingly at a route-level and to improve how we regulate Network Rail’s national system operator function.

Along with a letter setting out our conclusions, we also published a supporting document, summarising stakeholder responses and setting out our comments on these. Both documents are available below.

In terms of next steps:

  • we published a consultation on the development of the regulatory settlement for Network Rail’s national system operator in CP6;
  • on 23 November 2016, we published a consultation on our draft guidance to Network Rail on its strategic business plans (SBPs), which set out our expectations for the plans it would produce and the process it would follow for this.

For other information on PR18 publications, please see our PR18 timetable.