STAGECOACH LOSES COURT CASE

RMT helpline 0800 376 3706 :: july/august 2020 :: RMTnews 11 T he High Court has ruled against Stagecoach Group’s claims against the secretary of state for transport regarding decisions to disqualify it from three rail franchise competitions. The disqualifica- tions saw the group exit the British rail franchising market. The Perth-based group decided to sue the government after being disqualified from bidding for the East Midlands and West Coast Partnership franchise competitions last year and abandoning the contest for South Eastern. Virgin joined the lawsuit after its joint bid with Stagecoach to renew their contract to run the West Coast Main Line, which runs from London to Glasgow, was blocked at the 11th hour last year. The case centred on the disqualification from bidding after Stagecoach and its partners refused to take on what the group termed “unknowable risk” in pensions liabilities. Lawyers for the group had blasted the Railway Pensions Scheme as a “basket case” and claimed rail franchising was in crisis. RMT general secretary Mick Cash said that the ruling had completely exposes how broken the failed privatised rail franchising system was when fat cat train operating companies can sue the government at will and huge amounts of taxpayers money is wasted on legal fees. "The fact that Stagecoach Group Plc wanted all the lashings and profits of the railway without any of the risk of the railway pension scheme is one more nail in the coffin of the privatised system. "The government must now act quickly and work with the unions and industry to secure the future of the Railways Pension Scheme which has been questioned not because of the actual funding position of the scheme but due to privatised ownership model. "It’s vital the government now does the right thing and brings our railways into public ownership and ends this 25 year old free-market farce once and for all,” he said. R MT has welcomed the actions of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency in detaining and inspecting six cruise ships in Tilbury and Bristol following serious concerns over the welfare of nearly 2,000 crew members who are stranded on these vessels, unable to disembark or return home due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The six cruise ships are all registered under Flags of Convenience (Bahamas and Madeira) and are owned by Greek company Global Maritime Group. RMT assistant general secretary Mick Lynch said that the MCA's intervention exposed the shipping industry's culture of abuse of seafarers' rights, from the use of Flags of Convenience with no diplomatic influence and basic monthly wages as low as 200 Euros per month. "The conditions imposed on seafarers as a consequence of Covid-19 should never be forgotten and RMT is working with the ITF to end the appalling treatment of these key workers and other seafarers employed within the cruise ship sector around the UK Coast who may also be subject to similar concerns at this moment in time,” he said. OUT: Private transport operator Stagecoach has joined National Express in retreating from the rail sector to focus on the bus and coach business CRUISE SHIPS DETAINED he High Court has ruled against Stagecoach Group’s claims against the secretary r of y state for transport regarding decisions to disqualify f it from y three rail franchise Virgin joined the lawsuit after its joint bid with Stagecoach to renew their contract to run the West Coast Main Line, which runs from London to Glasgow, was blocked crisis. RMT general secretary r Mick y Cash said that the ruling had completely expo y ses how broken the fa f iled privatised rail franchising system was when fa f t "The government must now act quickly and work with the unions and industry r to y secure the future of the Railways Pension Scheme which has been questioned not because of the STAGECOACH LOSES COURT CASE