Corbyn-backing train PR rails at minister

A CORBYN-supporting PR chief at Britain’s biggest rail firm has been forced to delete an ‘ill-advised’ post calling for Transport Secretary Chris Grayling to be sacked.

Cathy Augustine, head of internal communications for embattled Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR), described the Tory minister as ‘Failing Grayling’ in response to a Facebook post by a Labour MP. Her comments come despite working for the firm at the same time as it was forced to pay out millions in compensation following this year’s botched timetable changes, delays and cancellations.

In July, after 20,000 trains were cancelled or severely delayed in six weeks, the Department for Transport threatened to strip GTR of its franchise.

Its chief executive Charles Horton stepped down in the wake of the debacle. However Miss Augustine, who fills her Facebook timeline with pro-Labour material, made no mention of these failings when describing Mr Grayling as ‘unfit to hold ministerial office’. The posts have since been deleted.

The 57-year-old, who lives in Oxford, is a staunch Jeremy Corbyn supporter and is believed to be a member of the far-Left Momentum group. Other posts described Theresa May as the ‘Maybot’ and called on people to ‘rise like lions’ and join Labour. Last week at Labour’s party conference shadow chancellor John McDonnell pledged he would renationalise the railways within five years of taking power.

A GTR spokesman said: ‘This was an ill-advised post and was never intended to be made public.’