NATIONALISATION NOT MCNULTY

RMT helpline 0800 376 3706 :: october 2011 :: RMTnews 18 Reuniting the railways under public ownership could save the taxpayer £1.2 billion a year, according to the Transport for Quality of Life think tank. The interim report is part of a project due to be completed in December to examine what the structure of the railways to put a future Labour government firmly on the side of the passenger and taxpayer. The report, commissioned by rail unions, insists that public ownership could be achieved through cheaper borrowing costs, the removal of dividends to shareholders and reducing fragmentation. Over £300 million alone annually could be saved by taking the train operating companies back into public ownership. The briefing, released at a fringe meeting at Labour Party conference said the savings from a re-integrated railway could lead to an across-the- board 18 per cent cut in rail fares. An ICM poll also found that 71 per cent of those asked believed privatised train companies were more concerned with making profits than providing affordable fares and a decent service for passengers. The Transport for Quality of Life report also said that privatisation had resulted in significant social, environmental and other costs to the UK including the destruction of a once-successful train manufacturing industry. RMT general secretary Bob Crow said that the research nailed the lie of the McNulty Review that the answer to the inefficiencies and over-charging on Britain’s railways is more cuts, more rip-off opportunities for big business and higher fares. “The solution is simple - stop the greed, fragmentation and profiteering of privatisation and we can save more than a billion pounds that could be invested back into the system. “If Labour fail to grasp the popularity and economic common sense of renationalising the railways they will be throwing away the political opportunity of a lifetime,” he said. TSSA Assistant General Secretary Manuel Cortes said that it was no longer possible to continue to tinker at the edges of the problem. “Privatisation has failed passengers, workers, business and the economy. We now need to open our minds to bold new alternatives that serve the interests of passengers and taxpayers rather than the god of profit," he said. NO TO MCNULTY The report was released as the campaign against the ‘Value for Money’ McNulty report is gathering pace before the mass rally and lobby of parliament at 12.30 and October 25 2011, Methodist Central Hall, Westminster, London. The government is producing a Rail White Paper this autumn. If it decides to implement the McNulty report, it would further fragment the railway and shift even more power to private train operators. Train manufacturing is already under huge pressure after the government awarded train-building contracts to German giant Siemens rather than Derby-based Bombardier NATIONALISATION NOT MCNULTY Report reveals public ownership of rail could save £1.2 billion and most people believe train operators are fleecing the public