Railways at risk of ‘master-slave dynamic’

ONE of Grant Shapps’ top civil servants has said that the Government’s decision to axe rail franchising will create a “master-slave” relationship with train companies in thrall to the state.

Peter Wilkinson, director of rail passenger services at the Department for Transport, said that Great British Railways, the flagship body unveiled by Mr Shapps earlier this year, is likely to act as a “benevolent dictatorship”, according to industry sources.

The remarks, made during an industry Microsoft Teams call on Wednesday, shine a light on the Department for

Transport’s vision of the future of the railways. Mr Shapps, Transport Secretary, and Keith Williams, Royal Mail’s chairman and the former boss of British Airways, published their long-awaited review of the railways in May.

Great British Railways is intended to bring track and trains under the control of one body. It was one half of the biggest shake-up of the industry in more than a quarter of a century.

The report also ushered in the end of franchising, making permanent the emergency changes to the financial structure of the railways that were brought in when Covid struck. The Government now collects fares and pays operators a flat fee, turning the old franchising model on its head.

Mr Wilkinson, who is paid £264,999 a year, warned that the changes risked creating a “master-slave” relationship – where Great British Railways is the master and the operators are the slaves.

His comments, made on a call hosted by trade body the Rail Industry Association with around 50 attendees, also included a warning the Treasury was poised to enact sweeping budget cuts.

This could lead to greater ingenuity. “Adversity is the mother of invention,” he is alleged to have said. With most of the attendees part of the rail industry supply chain, Mr Wilkinson is understood to have said that new contracts would provide more scope for private investment and benefit suppliers.

A spokesman from the Railway Industry Association (RIA) said: “We found the meeting with Peter Wilkinson to be very positive, highlighting the important role and opportunities for the rail supply industry in supporting the UK railway network as it restructures to Great British Railways.”

A spokesman for the Government said: “The alleged comments are presented without context and fundamentally misrepresent the meeting in which Mr Wilkinson set out the crucial role of the private sector in delivering reform.”