You can listen to an interview with me on BBC Radio Five on why renationalisation is the only solution to Britain's railway woes, here.
(Discussion starts at around 54 minutes into the programme).
While here, you can read my piece from the Guardian's Comment is Free website on the renationalisation issue and what it tells us about the state of democracy in Britain today.
UPDATE: You can listen to another BBC radio interview with me on the railways, here. The discussion starts at around 1hr 49mins into the programme.
FURTHER UPDATE: You can listen to a panel discussion on 'Britain's Broken's Rails', featuring Christian Wolmar, John Page of TSSA and myself on Voice of Russia, here.
8 comments:
Just as, by the time of the next General Election, Labour is going to have to promise to separate retail banking and investment banking by the force of the Statute Law, since the banks are not going to have done it themselves, so, by the time of the next General Election, Labour's open mind on the subject of rail ownership will be well and truly, and rightly closed.
Like a British Glass-Steagall, renationalisation will be the next Labour Government's gift to a genuinely rejoicing nation within the first year of that Government's life. Bring it on.
Hi David,
Well, let's hope so- but we've got to keep pressure on as the Blairites in the party will do all they can to prevent Lab committing to public ownership.
I don't agree that having the civil servants who screwed up the franchising would be a step forward. I would rather go for a process which would encourafe real technological innovation - lighter vehicles run by automated systems.
The reasl problem is that because railways are inherently monopolistic and roads competitive there has been enormous technological progress in road traffic over the last century and far less on rail.
But I somehow doubt I am ever going to be invited by the BBC state owned broadcasting monopoly propagandists to say that.
Hi Neil,
Great to hear from you- are you on Twitter?
I'm @NeilClark66
CPO is @PublicOwnership
Re the point re civil servants- we'd have railway experts & engineers running the new publicly-owned British Rail and rail workers & passengers represented on the board. We'd have a really democratic, publicly-owned & publicly accountable railway.
for those who missed it: here is UNDERGROUND.the complete movie
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NrEECcMVCN4&feature=youtu.be
In the Midlands, trains are going to be delayed until mid-December on the London Midland service as the train drivers have left in order to get higher wages elsewhere on Britain's rail network. Such is the benefit of competition...BTW Peter Hitchens is also arguing for nationalisation and the return of BR.
PS. You might be interested in some of the articles I have been writing on the importance of the TAPI pipeline to the Western Powers in "staying the course" in Afghanistan. Pilger wrote on it in Freedom Next Time but only in the run up to the invasion of 2001. Yet since the TAPI pipeline was launched afresh as a project, little has been written on it.
thanks for link, Brian.
Hi Karl, great to hear from you- hope all's well.
Yes, PH is excellent on this issue.
yes, Afghanistan pieces definitely of interest.
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