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2 June 2003
Tom Winsor, the Rail Regulator, today published his annual report for 2002-03, and his business plan for 2003-04 setting out his regulatory programme, together with a consultation document on the process for setting the licence fees to support this year's programme. Taken together, the Regulator's annual report for the 2002-03 and his business plan for 2003-04 set the priorities for the coming year against the achievements of the past year, which was the first full year of Network Rail's stewardship of the rail network. Tom Winsor said: "The stewardship and performance of the infrastructure has been very far from satisfactory in the reporting year. This fact is acknowledged by Network Rail, and the company is taking steps to make improvements. The ORR has continued to monitor and challenge Network Rail's plans and delivery in relation to network stewardship and performance throughout the reporting year. We have appointed reporters to help in this. In the months ahead, we will keep under review the nature and intensity of pressure which needs to be applied, and act accordingly." In a busy year that has seen the end of the administration of Railtrack and the transfer of the national infrastructure to Network Rail, significant progress has also been made on the interim review of the structure, level and profile of the access charges which Network Rail receives from franchised passenger train operators. Commenting on his business plan for the year ahead, Tom Winsor said: "The response from the rail industry to my plans for 2003-2004 has been very positive. It is essential that the work we carry out is prioritised in a way best calculated to benefit the operation of railway services and those who use and pay for them. This we can do by holding Network Rail to account for its stewardship obligations, by delivering the interim review of track access charges and by handling access and licence applications efficiently." Tom Winsor went on to explain that his licence fee review sets out the reasons why Network Rail's share of the licence fees used to meet the Regulator's running costs may be increased from 40 per cent to 50 per cent. He said: "Amongst the feedback to the draft business plan there was significant support for an increase in Network Rail's share of the costs to support ORR's programme of work which I outlined in the plan." Notes for editors:1. All three documents are available from Sue MacSwan, ORR Librarian, 1 Waterhouse Square, 138-142 Holborn, London EC1N 2TQ. Tel: 020 7282 2001; fax: 020 7282 2045. 2. The ORR Annual Report for 2002-03, published today, is linked on the right of the page. 3. The ORR business plan 2003-04, published today, is available to download on the right of this page. 4. The consultation document ORR licence fee review a consultation document, published today, is available to download on the right of this page. PRESS ENQUIRIES: ORR Press Office - 020 7282 2002/2007
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