KICK OUT THE PRIVATEERS

RMT helpline 0800 376 3706 :: june 2019 :: RMTnews 4 RMT has welcomed a call from Manchester and Merseyside Mayor’s Andy Burnham and Steve Rotheram for Arriva to be stripped of their failing Northern Rail franchise and for the services to be brought back into the public sector. The two Mayors have called on the Transport Secretary Chris Grayling to terminate the franchise as soon as possible. They say that from December 2018 to April 2019 – a fifth of all services were late, almost 30,000 trains cancelled and there was a near 50 per cent rise in the number of services with reduced carriages. The figures come a year after the widespread timetable chaos of May 2018 across the Northern franchise. RMT general secretary Mick Cash said welcomed this decisive move and called for a swift transition of the Northern routes into a public sector operation with no more excuses for any delay. “RMT will be seeking immediate assurances that the jobs, conditions and pensions of our members will be protected once Arriva are finally kicked off the Northern routes. “The union will also expect to see an end to outsourcing of support functions and an absolute commitment to safety and the guard guarantee. “Any attempt by Chris Grayling and the DfT to sabotage the clear wishes of the democratically elected representatives will spark a furious political backlash. For Arriva Rail North the game is up,” he said. SOUTHERN RMT also repeated calls for Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) to be stripped of their franchise with services taken into public ownership after Southern scored the worst levels of public trust out of all rail companies over the past two years. The GTR Great Northern and Thameslink operations were also rated way down in the relegation zone. Analysis by Transport Focus showed the firm was given "notably low scores for trust" across the last four passenger surveys, ranging from 17 per cent in spring and autumn 2017 to 22 per cent in the most recent survey in autumn last year. These were the lowest scores out of all the train operators. Mick Cash said that over three years RMT members had been warning that Southern was a basket case franchise, cutting corners on safety and service and not fit to run a railway and these latest shocking figures proved that RMT had been right all along. “Finishing bottom of the league when there are no- hopers like Northern Rail in the running takes some doing but for both passengers and staff alike the cavalier attitude of Southern to safety, access and quality of service is no joke. “GTR, which is the group operation including Southern, Thameslink and Great Northern, are specialists in failure who should have been removed from the tracks by Chris Grayling ages ago but instead he has chosen to bail them out and prop them up at taxpayer expense regardless of what depths they plumb. “RMT will continue to fight for the return of the guards, for safety and access to come first and for the whole lot to be brought into the public sector,” he said. VINTAGE: A Northern Rail 142 Pacer diesel train at Doncaster station. The National Rail Museum want a Pacer for their collection but they can't have one as they are still in operational use by Northern. KICK OUT THE PRIVATEERS RMT calls for spivs to be stripped of Northern and Southern franchises