Caledonian Sleeper

The Caledonian Sleeper is to be taken into public hands in June, transport minister Jenny Gilruth has confirmed to MSPs.

This was considered carefully at the time, but was declined on value for money terms.” "Options considered included the possibility of a direct award. Mick Lynch, general secretary of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union, which represents many Sleeper staff, said: "We have campaigned tirelessly for this win, and I congratulate every part of the union who had a hand in making this a reality.” Scottish Labour transport spokesperson Neil Bibby welcomed the rail unions’ campaign which had been “instrumental in making the case for public ownership”, but called for the Sleeper to be reintegrated with ScotRail. Serco’s managing director for transport John Whitehurst said: “Unfortunately, the Scottish Government has not requested a costed proposal for a direct contract award, which would have allowed Scotland to benefit from the expertise of our team who understand this complex and unique hospitality-focused train operation like no one else, while also enabling ministers to be in complete control of the contract. [after rejecting Serco’s call for significantly increased funding](https://www.scotsman.com/news/transport/sercos-bid-for-extra-cash-to-keep-running-caledonian-sleeper-rejected-because-of-scary-numbers-3870736) for the remainder of the current contract as “not best value for money”.

Transport minister Jenny Gilruth confirmed that they would be taking over the running of the Fort William, Inverness and Aberdeen overnight service to ...

He asked how Ms Gilruth planned to ensure the taxpayer isn't picking up the £60m losses going forward. “If it’s about value for money the minister should have explained why she has not requested or received a costed proposal from Serco for a Direct Contract Award. Sign up to our daily newsletter Serco criticised the decision. [ScotRail](https://www.scottishdailyexpress.co.uk/all-about/scotrail) as she said a separate arms-length organisation will run it instead. The service has been operating in various forms since 1873 and runs overnight trains between Scotland and London. [SNP ministers may 'change mind' over nationalisation of the Caledonian Sleeper](https://www.scottishdailyexpress.co.uk/news/politics/snp-ministers-change-mind-over-28715291) ['NatRail' has paid out more than £400k to delayed passengers in first six months](https://www.scottishdailyexpress.co.uk/news/politics/natrail-paid-out-more-400k-28419083) [ScotRail delays and cancellations cost taxpayers £400,000 in less than five months after SNP takeover](https://www.scottishdailyexpress.co.uk/news/politics/scotrail-delays-cancellations-cost-taxpayers-28370530) [Fears erupt over potential nationalisation of the Caledonian Sleeper by SNP ministers](https://www.scottishdailyexpress.co.uk/news/politics/fears-erupt-over-potential-nationalisation-28163536) [For the latest politics news, click here.](https://www.scottishdailyexpress.co.uk/news/politics/) They pointed out that they had improved the service since taking over in 2015, including "to every aspect of the service for our employees, our passengers and for Scotland, despite having made significant losses on the contract." She added: "Rather, the decision that I had to take on rebasing was a question of the terms of the rebase offer and that, in the government's view, these terms did not represent the best value for money." Ms Gilruth added that the decision not to rebase was "in no way a reflection on the quality of the product that has been developed, nor on the commitment of the staff who deliver this service every day". [The SNP](https://www.scottishdailyexpress.co.uk/all-about/snp) government announced last October that they were terminating Serco's contract seven years early after they tried to renegotiate the contract due to the fact it was making losses. [The Scottish Government](https://www.scottishdailyexpress.co.uk/all-about/scottish-government) have confirmed plans to nationalise the Caledonian Sleeper, months after they announced that they were stripping Serco of their contract.

Scotland's transport minister, Ms Jenny Gilruth, has announced Caledonian Sleeper will be operated by a government-owned arm's-length company.

Gilruth said last year that a proposal from Serco to “rebase” the franchise agreement had been rejected on the grounds of “not representing value for money to the public.” However, the managing director of Serco’s transport business, Mr John Whitehurst, says that a direct contract with Serco, such as the company had proposed, would have ensured value for money. “The decision will provide a stable platform for the provision of sleeper services and it will also provide certainty for staff and, of course, the travelling public,” she told the Scottish parliament.

RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said: “The Scottish government has done the right thing and now joins the Welsh government in bringing all passenger services ...

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The Minister said: “Having stated in October that the existing Caledonian Sleeper franchise would come to an end in June 2023, I want to give rail staff and ...

This is in line with our Operator of Last Resort duty. “That is why I have confirmed that, from the expiry of the current franchise, Caledonian Sleeper services will be provided through Scottish Rail Holdings, a company wholly-owned and controlled by the Scottish Government. Caledonian Sleeper services will be provided by the Scottish Government from the expiry of the current Caledonian Sleeper franchise on 25 June 2023.

Highlands-London service will be run by state-owned company after operator Serco loses contract seven years early.

[BBC News](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-business-64802833) that the company was disappointed that the Scottish government “did not ensure value for money by examining the possibility of a direct contract award to Serco”. However, Gilruth added that the decision to bring the service into public hands would not be a permanent one, saying she and officials would continue to monitor “market conditions”. [announced last year](https://www.theguardian.com/business/2022/oct/05/london-scotland-sleeper-service-renationalisation-serco-caledonian-trains) an offer to rebase the Serco contract did not represent “value for money”. The decision was taken when Serco attempted to renegotiate the agreement through a “rebase clause”, to ensure the loss-making service was on “a more sustainable financial footing”. “I would like to make it very clear that the Caledonian Sleeper staff will transfer to the Scottish government-owned entity, with their terms and conditions protected.” She said: “The decision will provide a stable platform for the provision of Sleeper services and it will also provide certainty for staff and, of course, the travelling public.

Transport minister Jenny Gilruth said the service, which connects some of Scotland's most rural stations to London, will be operated by an arm's-length company ...

The minister announced last year that an offer to re-base the Serco contract did not represent “value for money” for the public purse, saying on Thursday she also rejected the possibility of a direct award to the firm or putting the contract out to tender. Ms Gilruth intimated that the decision to bring the service into public hands would not be a permanent one, saying she and officials would monitor “market conditions” in the rail sector and wider economy. Announcing the move in Holyrood on Thursday, Ms Gilruth told MSPs the decision to remove the contract from Serco should not be seen as a reflection on the firm’s operation of the service.

Rail union, RMT warmly welcomed today's decision by the Scottish government to take Caledonian Sleeper into public ownership.

"The Scottish government has done the right thing and now joins the Welsh government in bringing all passenger services into public ownership. "This decision should be a wake-up call to the Department for Transport in Westminster, to end its failed obsession with privatisation and bring the whole railway system into public ownership." This decision means that both the Scottish and Welsh Governments are running all of their rail passenger services in public ownership.

Thu 2 Mar, 2023. It can help us on our climate journey by delivering a much needed shift from plane to rail and boosting better connectivity with our ...

“It can help us on our climate journey by delivering a much needed shift from plane to rail and boosting better connectivity with our friends in Europe. “With tickets often costing in the hundreds of pounds, there is a lot of work to do to ensure that the sleeper service is an affordable one. It can help us on our climate journey by delivering a much needed shift from plane to rail and boosting better connectivity with our friends in Europe- Mark Ruskell MSP