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"The Commons Public Accounts Committee publishes its 71st Report of
the Session, on the basis of evidence from the Department for Transport.
The Rt Hon Margaret Hodge MP, Chair of the Committee of Public Accounts, today said:
"The Department for Transport prepared early for the 2010 Spending Review, identifying areas for budget reductions based on good analysis. But for road users, railway passengers and taxpayers, there are many questions which remain unanswered.
... Another area which concerns us is rail spending. Rail budgets aren’t being reduced as much as other areas, yet passengers still face high fares. The Department needs to understand why the cost of rail travel is so high, and understand better what scope there is for further efficiencies.
It is unacceptable that Network Rail is still not fully transparent or accountable to Parliament or the taxpayer. The Department hands Network Rail over £3 billion each year and underwrites debt of over £25 billion, and yet maintains the fiction that this is a private sector company. The National Audit Office must be allowed full audit access as quickly as possible to this organisation, which is essentially kept afloat through public funds."
Link to The Independent:
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