Steve Hedley
RMT London regional organiser
National Shop Stewards Network national conference 2010, Steve Hedley, London Regional Secretary, RMT, photo Socialist Party (Click to enlarge: opens in new window)
Sir Roy McNulty’s railway ‘value for money’ report, commissioned by the government, seems to blame and penalise workers for the failed privatisation policies of successive Tory and Labour governments.
The disastrous privatisation of British Rail resulted in worse employment conditions and cost three times as much to run as the nationalised British Rail.
The subsequent public-private partnerships (PPPs) on London Underground, shamefully the brain child of the Labour Party, were equally disastrous. Having pillaged the industry, private conglomerates Tubelines and Metronet fled when pickings weren’t so rich, leaving the tax payer to pick up a bill of £billions.
It beggars belief that McNulty expects the commuter and worker to pay for the failed policies of private greed. More jobs cuts, worse services and still further cuts in safety will result unless unions and commuters unite to kick out the McNulty report and demand full renationalisation of the whole rail network under democratic public control.
The gauntlet has been thrown down; together we must pick it up and meet this challenge head on.
