Sleeper Campaign update - Franchise Manager job vacancy and Serco financial crisis

10 March 2018

The ever-vigilant Julian Paren has drawn attention to several documents which emphasise the unhappy state of the Caledonian Sleeper franchise contract with Transport Scotland

• A job advertisement by Transport Scotland for a  Rail Franchise Commercial Manager in Scotland  £56,488 - £67,660 (pro rata for part time),  which specifically refers to  "contingency planning . . . in the event a franchise agreement is terminated or otherwise comes to an end but no further contract has been entered into in respect of the services."
   
• Reports of a financial statement by Serco which refers to huge losses attributable to the sleeper contract and to the possibility that they may seek to renegotiate the franchise agreement or withdraw from it altogether.
   
• A letter from Transport Minister Humza Yousaf to a Scottish Parliamentary committee alerting them to this possibility but trying to suggest that everything is still under control.

Read more about all these developments on our  Travel & Tourism / Caledonian Sleeper page.