There's probably agreements that need to be sorted out again for the new training plan (I know it shouldn't take this long)Are you saying training has been paused ?
How does that assist getting more 701s into service.
I might be cynical, but per ORR figures, SWR is only running 82.02% of pre covid vehicle km (from ORR table 1253 using same quarter, Jul-Sep 2019 and Jul-Sep 2024 (which is most recent published quarter)
Now if SWR has lost 18% of their operations, unless they have seen 18% of staff retire or leave (and not be replaced) in 5 years, then not having surplus staff for training suggests something else is delaying training.
Plus in those 5 years, there was a multi year recruitment freeze imposed by the DFT on instruction from the previous government.
Guards dropping from 42/5 to 37/4.5 hasn't helped with staffing numbers, and drivers retiring or leaving simply haven't be replaced to the level required since 2019.