16 The Department has improved its management of its rail franchising programme, and is better placed to deliver value for money than it was in 2012, following the collapse of the InterCity West Coast competition. The results of early franchise competitions indicate that, if managed effectively, returns to the taxpayer could be higher than in the past. The Department's use of short-term direct awards was sensible but it may have missed opportunities to maximise value for money in the early direct awards.
17 More importantly, there are emerging risks to the value for money of future competitions. In particular, there is significant uncertainty about the infrastructure requirements for some franchises and there are risks to effective competition if market interest declines. The Department recognises these challenges and is taking steps to address them.