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End privatisation now.

Gennaro Gualtieri, London   + Share

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Your Views

  • Back to public rail.

    Bona Mohammed, Southampton
  • Privatisation is killing the UK.

    Malcolm Barnes, Sheffield
  • I long for the day when we have a national rail service for one and all.

    Paul Rutter, Farnborough
  • Re-nationalise it all!

    Matty Nesbitt, Liverpool
  • Look at what East Coast brings to the public coffers.

    Boris Durham, Leeds

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Bring Back British Rail

5 days ago

Bring Back British Rail

Privatisation costs more! πŸšπŸ’·πŸ’Έ For passengers and for tax-payers, so it’s no wonder it exacerbates poverty. Hear former UN Special Rapporteur Philip Alston talking about his research into the human rights impacts of the UK’s deregulated bus system at Get Glasgow Moving’s public meeting tonight at 7pm πŸ‘‡πŸ‘‡ ...

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Public Transport: Privatisation & Poverty w/ special guest Philip Alston

www.eventbrite.co.uk

Register here for Get Glasgow Moving's Public Meeting & Annual General Meeting, w/ special guest Philip Alston
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What's the problem with saying Special Reporter? We are not in France 😏

The whole railway should be brought back into public ownership under British rail. Railways are supposed to be for the average people not the rich

www.facebook.com/199676720083396/posts/3951806331537064/ Cut costs with jobs so the greedy profiteers can make more money!!! I knew the tory scum wouldn't get rid of privatisation, too much money in their pals pockets at stake!!!

Yeah and they still plan to continue to freeze fuel duty for the private motorist in the next budget.

All this government efforts in trying to make rail privatisation work have proved to be unsuccessful yet they always seem to try again.

Privatisation was an EU directive so that they could buy into our industries. Now we are out we should be able to sort out what we have left.

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Bring Back British Rail

1 week ago

Bring Back British Rail

Now more than a year late, the recommendations of Keith Williams’ Rail Review are due to be released this Thursday 25 February 🚊 The Telegraph claims the Review will offer β€œfresh proposals designed to convince private train operators there are returns to be made.” Why do we need to beg private companies to run our railways for us? It's time to put people before profit and #TakeBackOurTrains ...

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Reforms aim to derail renationalisation fears

www.telegraph.co.uk

Fresh proposals will be set out this week, designed to convince private train operators there are returns to be made
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The telegraph would support any idea to keep our railways in the hands of racketeers even if it cost the taxpayers £billions. Profit before service.

Bring in the Fat Controller from Sodor πŸ˜‰

Time to renationalise the railways so that we have a coherent service and investment of profits make sure that the north and west have decent trains and carriages.

The Torygraph proposing people before profit ! ? Typical oxymorronic crap spouting from these pages. Wot have they been payed to write this, we all know public services should never be put in the hands of Capitalists their remit is to bleed companies dry and throw away the husk.. The Torygraph should investigate the criminality of their masters in Westmonster.... Grrrrrrrr

Network rail has just undergone a reform under the guise of putting passengers first, it has been set up in a way pretty much the same as pre nationalisation with east coast and anglia put together like the eastern region now why would this be happening? Could they be looking at operator and maintainer all in one- if only I had crystal balls....

If giving British taxpayers money to French and German railways is right I'll eat my hat

Look at what just happened in Texas with a deregulated energy market. There simply isn’t any advantage to privatization. It’s a get rich scam.

They'll decide to get one of their mates as a "consultant" in and get past d lots and lots of money and still come up with the same old claptrap.

we get what we vote for

Private enterprise my arse, they have all been subsidised to the hilt by the taxpayer since day one.

Telegraph does not support the people!

There are only returns to be made when big fat subsidies are provided.

Private companies have created chaotic rail services

Bring back British Rail!

Like the utility companies should never of privatised the railways

I thought the companies contract when to 2026

I don't fear renationalisation. Daily Telegraph was run by Conrad Black.

I'm sure Matt Hancock's got a mate who used to own a hairdressers who's perfectly capable of handling a multibillion pound contract to run the railways 😟

The Tax Payer has been subsidising this while the profits still go to the share holders. Bring it back under National control.

Loads more taxpayers money down the pan, and we don't even own it!

I'm fearing another botched privatisation not nationalisation

Now, when was the last time I decided to try and persuade a tiger that I really wouldn't taste very nice?

Flogging a dead horse springs to mind.

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Bring Back British Rail

3 weeks ago

Bring Back British Rail

Today we celebrate the Transport for Wales Rail franchise being brought back into public ownership by the Welsh Government after 25 years of failed privatisation πŸš‰βœŠ Why don't The Scottish Government and the UK government learn from their example? Stop the bailouts to failing private companies πŸ’·πŸ’Έ It's time to #TakeBackOurTrains! ...

Today we celebrate the Transport for Wales Rail franchise being brought back into public ownership by the Welsh Government after 25 years of failed privatisation πŸš‰βœŠ Why dont The Scottish Government and the UK government learn from their example? Stop the bailouts to failing private companies πŸ’·πŸ’Έ Its time to #TakeBackOurTrains!
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I can answer that, easily... It's because the central government gets these things called "political financial donations" from people like Sir Richard Branson who own the companies that get the public transport franchises. And these "donations" are not officially linked to a contingency of "I give you this money, you give me an advantageous business opportunity" as that would be "bribery" which is a criminal act... So nobody openly say what the donations are for or why certain people get the government issued contracts, but we all know what's up!

FFS, dont let the SNP near the Scottish trains, every thing they go near ends up a disaster.

Debbie Jones one for Gwyn

Ciaran Watling xx

Shug Cumming Liam Tansey Craig Robertson

It's the Wales and Borders franchise. This highlights the undemocratic nature of the UK. Why should the Welsh Assembly have control over many services that run mostly through England, (Hereford to Manchester, Liverpool to Chester etc) who have no electoral means to influence rail policy, it was not acceptable for the situation to be reversed so why is this okay? Last year had Welsh MPs voting on England only legislation again, which is utterly corrupt. Time the UK broke up into it's 4 nations, or an English parliament led railway is set up.

They made a right bollocks of it though

All monopolies should be in public ownership because they only serve to exploit people when in private ownership. Necessity of services demands that the public sector run it for the public and serve everyone. Services include train, busses, gas, electric, water, post office and telecommunications.

Delighted that Wales has taken back control of the railways which serve us in the Welsh Borders as well.

Welsh government can’t organise a piss up in a brewery

Time they brought it all back in the public sector, the only people it benefits is the rich investors who care little for the public, what next, gas, electric, post office, the list is endless !!

When the ECML franchise was briefly back under public control things started to improve but the Tories have to see a profit being made and it has to go into a private pocket.

'Wales & Borders rail franchise taken into public ownership' Here's the Railway Gazette International's coverage www.railwaygazette.com/wales-and-borders-rail-franchise-taken-into-public-ownership/58456.article

8 years living in maesteg and working in Cardiff. Used arriva every single day. What a pile of crap that company was!

Mae hynny'n newyddion gwych... Dim mwy o breifatisation ConSelfServaTory

Great news, now get on with it for the rest of the UK.

The myth of competition in public services. We see it not only in transport, but in education and many other sectors. Unnecessary.

Economy of scale, one single management structure no shareholders

Well done Wales!

I’d like to see the Intercity Swallow livery back on all intercity trains in the country (including the sleepers) and bring back restaurant cars too.

Arriva we're really good though

Can't be any worse than the customer service under Arriva, eh Anthony AntDav? πŸ—

How does this work for trains covered by the franchise that run in England? I am fully behind nationalised railways, but wonder how the Welsh government can have authority over trains that run in England?

The private monopolies are excellent at extracting money from their customers whether it be trains,electricity or water etc but hopeless at running the services because they are just not interested at all

Too many politicians on their pay roll☹️

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Bring Back British Rail

3 weeks ago

Bring Back British Rail

Why has the deadline for terminating rail franchises been extended? Apparently, because the Department for Transport doesn’t want to have to take them back into public control! This is ridiculous, passengers want public ownership and now is the perfect opportunity to #TakeBackOurTrains ...

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Franchise termination negotiations run on past deadline

www.railwaygazette.com

UK: Negotiations over the termination of passenger franchise contracts are proving difficult, with some payments yet to be agreed and direct awards still being discussed.
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Hardly surprising. The Treasury hasn't a clue how the railway operates. For a start the sort of savings they want are impossible to achieve. Running half the trains does not mean half the costs. The infrastructure is still there, you do have to pay staff like drivers when they are not actually in the cab, and it does not mean half the trains can be sold for scrap. The other problem is the Treasury are keeping all their so called data secret so the real experts cannot check it. The easy ones have come to an agreement, at least it was thought so. SWR reached a settlement, then it seems the settlement was not reached! The operators want to reform fares and rebuild train interiors to attract custom back. The commercially inept Treasury says no, instead they force operators to put fares up! Sure that will work, not!

We already own the railways, just don’t negotiate a new deal and let the franchise run its course, prepare for each one to finish, as it stands iirc they are already being directly helped out by the government anyway.

We’re cleaning up the colossal mess that was Ron Reagan, and you’re cleaning up the Margaret Thatcher debacle.

Amazing bad idea on so many levels. Its only take the government 6 months to empty the reailway and you are advocating putting them in charge .

Right now there shouldn't be passengers other than for essential work, two train crew that I know died within the last 7 days of Covid 19.

Because Tories are running the country πŸ™„ Stupid question.

This is a SPAD!

publick owner ship means profit can be spent on the network insted making the rich richer

Conservative dogma.

Privatisation was the biggest cock up the tories made in the 90s

Yes but the 'public' also voted brexit!!

Public ownership will make little difference. The working practices that made BR reliable have all gone by the wayside whilst the industry's debt is astronomical. The real question is whether the country actually needs a national rail network.

Tory party ideology will always overcome common sense and practicality

If you missed a copy of Christian Wolmar's article in Rail 922, you should be able to get in online and it tells that although John Major's privatisation of British Rail promises more investment to the railways, it's proving to be more and more ineffective than ever considering the amount of time, effort and money that has already been spent. Yes, BR's passenger operations was split after the regions were abolished and created Inter City, NSE and Regional Railways but did it work ?

Sadly the armchair detectives think they know best by making up conspiracy theories about Covid 19 being faked

Time to flog it to your Etonian Tory donor chums maybe?

Tory bastards

Who would take ownership of a company which is haemorrhageing money due to lack of passengers? Let them take the losses, then pounce!

All the government do is mess up everything, ask the NHS, emergency services, armed forces etc6. If government run we'd be back to cuts all the time. The railway is goosed beyond recovery with out billions upon billions being spent.

Lazy useless clueless!

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Bring Back British Rail

2 months ago

Bring Back British Rail

The Scottish Government has until 10 January 2021 to decide whether to continue to bail out Dutch state-owned company Abellio or #MakeScotRailPublic now! πŸš† Support the campaign πŸ‘‡ ...

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Public Ownership of Scotland’s Railway

you.38degrees.org.uk

Public transport is an essential public service. It facilitates the smooth running of our local and national economies, it helps cut the carbon emissions caused by car travel, and it enables everyone to participate in our society – to visit friends and family, to attend appointments, events or go ...
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When Jimmy Krankie gets you independence you can pay for it yourselves

I thought the Scottish parliament didn´t have the legal right to nationalise companies.

Are you really sure you want to be doing that? The snp screw up everything they touch. Just look at their attempt at building ferries. One afloat and rusting away with painted on windows, the other just a pile of scrap on a slipway, and the bill sitting at 300% of the original build cost.

Its a no brained.

with its record on island Ferries don't hold your breath...

Where would the money come from?

Anything that hurts Abellio is fine with me.

Not just the rail...make the whole of Scotland a separate country in its own right. Different currency, their own defence, their own GDP and let's see if they can afford to join NATO!

Scotland is probably going to NEED to own its rail network come independence, so...

Signed. 😁

Public-Private Partnerships ALWAYS swindle the people.

If you think the railways are shit now, you didn't live in the 1970s. In fact you have no concept of Shit Rail at all if you think handing over the railways to the unions is a good idea.

Other countries have successful transport networks that are owned by the state. Britain's privatised rail network has not been a success and Railtrack was a disaster so despite the shortcomings of the previous British Rail, a new publicly owned railway for Britain is the way forward so let Scotland lead by example. Rail subsidies doubled overnight with Major's fragmented rail scheme and fares have gone sky high.

Seeing as the idiot SNP thought awarding the contract made sense. It’s unlikely they will do anything sensible now

www.redbubble.com/i/mask/British-Rail-by-Zaibo/55745887.9G0D8?utm_source=rb-native-app&utm_campai...

They are not bailing Abellio out, now they are just bailing the railway out,stand by for 1970s service frequencies, the cuts have already started.

Hello , is there a personn who can find a railway cap of Scotrail for my collection /museum .Look at my website :http://www.coiffesferroviaires.net/index.html

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    Our Supporters

    • Something as important and necessary (and enjoyable) as train travel should be in the hands of the people, be affordable and safe, not making money for shareholders.

      Nina Power, writer
    • Like most people in Britain, I think that a railway is a natural function of the state, and so ought to be run by the state – for the sake of coherence, transparency, continuity, accountability and national pride.

      Andrew Martin, writer
    • Privatisation is only progress, if you mean progressing towards an apocalypse of injustice. Bring back British Rail!

      Josie Long, comedian
    • Let’s make the case for democratic social ownership, fit for the 21st century, ensuring our railways are run in the interests of passengers, not profiteers.

      Owen Jones, writer
    • The UK public wants a publicly owned railway, and so do we. Lush calls for an end to the failed experiment of privatising essential services.

      Tamsin Omond, Lush Campaigns
    • If the private companies that took over the national railways are cutting back and eroding services at a time when the climate crisis demands expanded low-carbon transportation alternatives to keep more of us out of planes, then these services too must be reclaimed.

      Naomi Klein, writer
    • There is no good excuse left for rail privatisation beyond enriching wealthy elites. Public ownership delivers for social and environmental needs over private profit.

      Professor Andrew Cumbers, University of Glasgow
    • In 1948 Labour nationalised rail to rebuild Britain after a world war. Today bankers and speculators use privatised trains for tax scams. Time to bring back British Rail.

      Alex Gordon, former RMT President
    • Taking our railways back from private profiteers will mean better services, fairer rail fares and more than Β£1 billion a year in savings for the public purse.

      Caroline Lucas, Green Party MP
    • East Coast shows us that publicly owned rail works better for passengers and taxpayers. We need a railway fit for the future – it’s got to be in public hands.

      Cat Hobbs, We Own It
    • Research into privatisation… boils down to one key finding: the only way Branson and the vast majority of train barons make their profits is through handouts from the taxpayer.

      Aditya Chakrabortty, The Guardian
    • Now is the moment to re-nationalise the railways and it has never been cheaper or more possible.

      Andrew Gilligan, journalist
    • Transport is an essential public service and ought to be publicly owned and publicly controlled. We need an enormous expansion in the investment in our railways and that is the best way of achieving it.

      Tony Benn, politician
    • Privatisation of the railways has failed. Its time to make a virtue of public ownership, and the public service provided by state employees.

      Charles Secrett, The ACT! Alliance
    • The privatisation of the railways was a scandal that created an unworkable and expensive structure which should be replaced with a national unified network.

      Christian Wolmar, transport commentator
    • To be able to reduce C02 emissions, by persuading people to leave cars at home, we need a fast, efficient subsidised railway system that’s run for people not profit!

      Ellie Harrison, campaign founder
    • Only a publicly owned railway can deliver affordable fares, good services, high customer satisfaction, properly staffed stations and a profitable return to the public purse.

      Charles Secrett, The ACT! Alliance
    • Privatisation has delivered… a system in which train operators and energy firms compete not on service – but on how many tariffs they can bamboozle customers with.

      Aditya Chakrabortty, The Guardian
    • At its heart privatisation in Britain was never about selling public networks but about selling the rights to tax those who are obliged to use them.

      James Meek, writer
    • A good public transport system should be the foundation of a fair, just, happy, low-carbon world.

      Ellie Harrison, campaign founder

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