‘Unmitigated disaster’: Unions and Sadiq Khan slam transport sec Mark Harper’s rail reform plan

Unions and Sadiq Khan have slammed the government’s plans to enhance the private sector’s role in railways, calling it “an unmitigated disaster.”

It comes after transport secretary Mark Harper announced last night the creation of Great British Railways (GBR), saying the new public body will take “politics out of the railways.”

According to Harper yesterday, GBR will be responsible for the sector’s performance by harnessing “the necessary oversight of the state with the dynamism, innovation and efficiency of the private sector.”

Harper announced plans to radically reform ticket pricing, halving the cost of single fares across the wider London North Eastern Railway (LNER) network and a possible expansion the ticketing system more widely.

He also announced the rollout of pay-as-you-go across south-eastern England as well as the trialling of fare fluctuations. 

The RMT union however called last night’s speech a “blatant attempt to divert attention from” the current railway crisis – with the system being mired in industrial action for months, over pay and conditions.

“Rail reform and a vision for the industry needs to have public ownership at its core and the goodwill of railway workers to make it happen,” said general secretary Mick Lynch. 

“But with the government hellbent on rewarding the private sector and attacking the terms and conditions of rail staff, good will is in short supply.”

His words were echoed by Mick Whelan, boss of train drivers’ union Aslef, who blamed the private sector for the current rail chaos. 

“It is, frankly, the manifold failures of the privateers that has brought the rail industry in this country to its knees,” Whelan added. 

“Because they are not interested in providing passengers – or businesses – with a public service, only in extracting a private profit.”

While Khan said GBR was a “rebranding” of Network Rail, even though Harper insisted the new trade body is not “a Network Rail 2.0, nor a return to British Rail.”

“These sticky plasters help nobody and this is evidence that this government’s out of ideas, out of space,” the mayor told City A.M.

Khan’s words come as the mayor, alongside TfL commissioner Andy Lord, visited a depot in Beckton earlier today to see the first of 54 new DLR trains, which are due to enter into service from next year.