FRENCH STATE PLAN TAKEOVER OF EUROSTAR

RMT helpline 0800 376 3706 :: july/aug 2014 :: RMTnews 8 R MT has slammed government “stupidity and pure fiscal incompetence” after it emerged that French state rail operator SNCF is in line for a takeover of the highly-profitable British stake in Eurostar. Under the current set up, the British stake in Eurostar stands at 40 per cent with the French owning 55 per cent and the Belgian’s five per cent. RMT representatives have been told that SNCF had a power of veto over any British sale, will not allow any sell-off to be conducted under the usual franchising rules and would be in a position to pick up the holding at a knock down price if the sale is allowed to go ahead. The planned sale, part of a Thatcherite government drive to flog off a bunch of remaining state assets by the end of the decade, has distinct echoes of the botched and costly Royal Mail sell off. It also comes on the back of the award to French state- backed Keolis of franchises to run rail operations on the massive new super-Thameslink network as part of a consortium and the Docklands Light Railway. A consortium involving Keolis is also leading contenders to pick up the pieces from government-led plans to destroy the successful British state- owned East Coast service. RMT acting general secretary Mick Cash said that the planned sell off of the highly-profitable British public stake in Eurostar was pure Thatcherite ideology and the latest reports that the French state can effectively take it over on their own terms just rams home that point. “With Keolis mopping up franchises like Thameslink and DLR it is as clear as day that this right-wing government are quite happy to have state ownership of Britain’s railways as long as it isn’t by the British state and as long as the financial benefits aren’t invested in our rail services. “The policy on rail in Britain is a poisonous combination of stupidity, right-wing ideology and sheer fiscal incompetence and the Eurostar sell-off must be halted now,” he said. B y the end of the decade Tube fares will rise by over a third faster than earnings, RMT research has revealed - demolishing the Mayor’s case for the cash-led axing of safety critical jobs and the closure of ticket offices. The research also showed that the real terms increase in Tube fares of 24 per cent, means that for example the cost a Zone 1 – 4 annual Travel card will rise to £2,238. The fare hikes are taking place despite frontline station staff being reduced by 17 per cent and when passenger numbers are predicted to rise by 12 per cent over the same period. RMT acting general secretary Mick Cash said that Boris Johnson had been pleading poverty in his campaign to axe jobs and close ticket offices but the research showed that he is awash with Londoner’s cash as both fares and passenger numbers soar through the roof. “Tube users will be disgusted when they find out that they are being ripped-off by the Mayor, paying inflation-busting fare increases while jobs, services and safety are hammered into the ground. “RMT’s fight to defend the principle of a safe tube system, with proper levels of staffing and where access for all is a key principle, will continue,” he said. FRENCH STATE PLAN TAKEOVER OF EUROSTAR RMT RESEARCH EXPOSES BORIS JOHNSON’S TUBE FARES SCANDAL