Skip to main content

Bring Back British Rail

  • About
  • News
  • Support
  • Facebook
  • X
  • Bluesky
  • Vimeo
  • Instagram

News

Opinion piece on Great British Railways

22nd July 2024 | Media Coverage / News

LBC Views

“Great British Railways should be the start of a new era for our country’s transport network, which everyone can get behind” – Ellie Harrison, Bring Back British Rail

Read our opinion piece about last week’s historic announcement on rail renationalisation for LBC Views.

+ Share

Like Tweet

« Older
Newer »

Your Views

  • Stop the fat cats filling their pockets with tax payers’ money. Re-nationalise the railways now.

    Michael Knights, London

  • I would like to see BR brought back into service. All the current train liveries have confused me.

    Damian Gevaux, Buckley

  • In 1948 the Government of the day had to nationalise the railways to keep them operating. That time has returned.

    Roger Jacob, Wrexham

  • I am a regular traveller on East Coast rail. It runs very efficiently at a profit and I see no good reason why it should be changed.

    Sarah Dowden, Newcastle-upon-Tyne

  • Bring it back.

    Jim Love, Middlesbrough

Latest from Facebook

— bringbackbritishrail

Comments Box SVG iconsUsed for the like, share, comment, and reaction icons
Author Avatar
Bring Back British Rail and Association of British Commuters
12 hours ago

🚨 Privatisation loopholes discovered in the Railways Bill 🚨 Last month, we thought we had a big win when the government amended the Bill to ensure that Great British Railways is fully publicly owned. But no one checked the small print… Read more from Emily Sullivan, co-founder of the Association of British Commuters in RAIL Magazine 👇 @top fans ... See MoreSee Less

Link thumbnail

Drafting issues in the Railways Bill put public ownership at risk

www.railmagazine.com

Emily Sullivan explains why the new ‘wholly owned’ requirement for Great British Railways will not deliver the public ownership Parliament expects.
View on Facebook
· Share
Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on LinkedIn Share by Email
View Comments likes love wow angry 15 Shares: 3 Comments: 0

0 CommentsComment on Facebook

View more comments

Author Avatar
Bring Back British Rail
1 month ago

📢 The 3rd Reading of the #RailwaysBill will now take place this 𝗪𝗲𝗱𝘀 𝟭𝟬 𝗝𝘂𝗻𝗲 🚆 Don't miss your chance to email your MP and ask them to back crucial amendments to ensure that our new publicly-owned Great British Railways always puts passengers' rights before private profit 👇 @top fans ... See MoreSee Less

Link thumbnail

Railways Bill: Demand your MP protect passengers' rights and our environment

weownit.org.uk

The Railways Bill must protect passengers' rights and our environment
View on Facebook
· Share
Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on LinkedIn Share by Email
View Comments likes love 20 Shares: 3 Comments: 4

4 CommentsComment on Facebook

View more comments

Author Avatar
Bring Back British Rail
1 month ago

📢 Last chance to take action! The #RailwaysBill which will establish Great British Railways get its 3rd Reading in the Commons this 𝗪𝗲𝗱𝘀 𝟯 𝗝𝘂𝗻𝗲 🚆 Please email your MP to ask them to back our amendments ensuring passengers' rights are always put before private profit 👇 @top fans ... See MoreSee Less

Link thumbnail

Railways Bill: Demand your MP protect passengers' rights and our environment

weownit.org.uk

The Railways Bill must protect passengers' rights and our environment
View on Facebook
· Share
Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on LinkedIn Share by Email
View Comments likes love 31 Shares: 17 Comments: 3

3 CommentsComment on Facebook

View more comments

Author Avatar
Bring Back British Rail
1 month ago

Good Riddance Govia! 🚆 We’re celebrating Thameslink, Southern Railway & Great Northern finally back in public ownership today 👏 This marks the end of a decade long fight begun by our friends the Association of British Commuters during the #SouthernFail crisis in 2016. Read more here: bringbackbritishrail.org/news @top fans ... See MoreSee Less

Image attachment
Image attachment
View on Facebook
· Share
Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on LinkedIn Share by Email
View Comments likes love haha wow angry 220 Shares: 18 Comments: 43

43 CommentsComment on Facebook

View more comments

Author Avatar
Bring Back British Rail
1 month ago

Please take action before Weds 3 June! 👇 @top fans
📧 weownit.org.uk/act-now/protect-passengers-rights🚨The Railways Bill comes back to parliament on 3rd June

This bill was supposed to "put people at the heart of our railway" - but it does not

We've worked with MPs on amendments to ensure the bill puts passengers before profit

Ask your MP to back these key amendments: weownit.org.uk/act-now/protect-passengers-rights ... See MoreSee Less

Please take action b
View on Facebook
· Share
Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on LinkedIn Share by Email
View Comments likes love 22 Shares: 2 Comments: 1

1 CommentsComment on Facebook

View more comments

Load more

Latest from Twitter

— @bringbackBR

Join the conversation using:
#bringbackbritishrail #bbbr #bringbackBR #BringBackOurRailways #railfail #farefail #publicrail #railripoff #RailRevolution #failrail

Latest from Flickr

— bringbackbritishrail

    Petition

    We are the collective voice of disgruntled rail passengers and disheartened train employees, demanding a re-unified national rail network run for people not profit.

    Sign the petition now and join 54381 other supporters.

    Bring Back British Rail

    Read or Edit the Petition

    You can add formatting using markdown syntax - read more
     
    54,381 signatures

    Our Supporters

    • 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

    • 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

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

      Ellie Harrison, campaign founder

    • 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

    • 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

    • 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

    • 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

    • 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

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

      Caroline Lucas, Green Party MP

    • 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

    • 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

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

      Andrew Gilligan, journalist

    • 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

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

      Josie Long, comedian

    • 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

    • 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

    Products

    • Bumper Sticker Bumper Sticker £3.00
    • Enamel Badge Enamel Badge £6.00
    • Rail Card Wallet Rail Card Wallet £4.00

    Bring Back British Rail is coordinated from Glasgow by Ellie Harrison, with the help of a small network of volunteers around the UK.
    The campaign operates as a ‘non-charitable campaigning body’ and so is free to carry out political activity and act as a pressure group.
    It aims to be a completely autonomous and transparent passenger-led organisation, which has no direct affiliation with any political parties.
    Accounts | Privacy Policy | Press & Media Enquiries: info@bringbackbritishrail.org

    Bring Back British Rail logo / identity designed by Fraser Muggeridge. Website by Neil Scott.