Let’s take back our railways
Corbyn praises Mirror’s rallying cry
JEREMY Corbyn has backed our call to renationalise the railways.
The Mirror’s rallying cry yesterday came as passengers faced a second day of misery following action by Southern staff.
And the Labour leader has joined union chiefs in saying the case for public ownership is now overwhelming.
Mr Corbyn said: “Privatisation has been a disaster. We pay the highest fares in Europe for some of the worst services, while subsidising private companies. Bringing railways back into public ownership – as championed by the Mirror – makes sense for passengers, taxpayers and rail workers alike.”
Manuel Cortes, general secretary of the TSSA union, added: “It is fantastic to see the Mirror capturing the public’s mood.
“Yesterday’s front page shows the paper is not afraid to stand up for the interests of our passengers and taxpayers.”
Mick Whelan, of train drivers’ union Aslef, said: “Most people think the only sensible option is to take our railways back into public ownership.” And Mick Cash, of the RMT, added: “The RMT is delighted the Mirror has stepped up to the plate. This is a shot in the arm for the campaign to end Britain’s privatised rail racket.” Angry Southern customers will today march to demand the resignation of Transport Secretary Chris Grayling. The protest, organised by the Association of British Commuters, will also call for an inquiry into Southern’s performance. All of its 2,242 weekday services were axed yesterday, affecting 300,000 passengers. And although the strike ended at midnight the firm warned services will also be “severely disrupted” today. Talks at conciliation body Acas between Southern and Aslef in the row over driver-only trains continue, with further action threatened tomorrow. Figures show all but one of the UK’s private train operators get more in subsidies than goes back in franchise payments. In 201314, the sector was handed £3.8billion. The top five recipients of public subsidy alone got almost £3billion between 2007 and 2011. This allowed them to make operating profits of £504million – 90% of which was paid to shareholders.