Private Train Operators and Mary Creagh

Mary Creagh: The bigger prize for Labour will be to get voters to agree to break down the boardroom doors of the private train operators. Creagh says: "We've got a very ambitious policy. I think this is going to be the biggest shakeup of the railways since privatisation in 1993.", according to The Guardian. Its defenders say our trains are the envy of Europe, with booming passenger numbers, a vastly improved safety record and investment coming with only slim average profit margins around 3% on average for train operators and The woman spearheading Labour emerging vision to put the people back in charge of the railways recently had cause to take direct action of her own. On an overcrowded and late CrossCountry train limping its way from Plymouth to Newcastle, with its air conditioning failing and litter piling up, shadow transport secretary Mary Creagh led a mini-invasion of a first-class carriage by disgruntled passengers. Not in a George Osborne way, she stresses. Unlike the chancellor, who attempted to secure an upgrade on a Virgin train without paying , she urged the conductor to declassify the first-class carriage in order to get seats for all. After Ed Miliband pledges to limit energy prices, some Labour voters expect a similarly bold approach to rail. Critics of the current system point out that private shareholders reap dividends off the back of huge public subsidy, with fares continually rising while the taxpayer contributes a grant roughly double the amount pumped in during British Rail day. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.