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The truth behind Labour’s plans to ‘renationalise’ rail
One thing about an incoming Labour government looks great: taking the railways into public ownership. But we won’t actually own the trains, warns SOLOMON HUGHES

LABOUR’S plans to renationalise the rail firms by taking over the train operating companies (TOCs) as their contracts come to an end is a big deal.

These are privately run but very heavily publicly subsidised companies that want to pump cash out of the government and passengers and then pump it into their investors’ hands. They are so keen to get the cash that they are rubbish at running the railways. Renationalising them is a good idea.

But if you want to know how some rail privatisation will continue even after Labour’s plans — and how it will continue to squeeze private cash out of public services, it’s worth having a look at the annual accounts of Eversholt UK Rails Ltd, which were published to zero media interest at the end of last month.

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Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander (right) speaks to SWR train drivers ahead of boarding the first operational renationalised train service at Waterloo train station in central London, May 25, 2025
Railway / 25 May 2025
25 May 2025

But unions warn renationalisation must not be fudged