Wednesday 22 July 2009

Let them eat cake but tell them nothing

Telegrammed by Ithuriel
Has the erudite Gricer Lord finally lost the plot?

Lord Bradshaw (Liberal Democrat)
To ask Her Majesty's Government what are the parent company loan obligations in the agreements for each of the current railway franchises.

Lord Adonis (Secretary of State, Department for Transport; Labour)
Details of all franchise agreements that are not deemed to be market sensitive are published in the Public Register at www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/rail/passenger/public register.

Information pertaining to loan arrangements between individual franchisees and their parent organisations are a matter for the parties to those agreements.

Wait a minute.

These committed loan agreements are determined by his Department.

Had his Department thought that NXEC might need a bit more spare cash in case of hard times, it could have required NEG to provide a larger committed loan - as has happened with other franchises in the past.

So loan arrangements between franchisees and their parents are a matter for government and therefore the taxpayer.

Les aristos a la lanterne!