From the floor to first class, our railways are a disgrace | Owen Jones
Never mind Jeremy Corbyn’s journey – what matters is that privatisation has been a train wreck, and ideologues who want to roll back the state can’t admit it
Some will accuse this column of shamelessly using an embarrassing story involving the Labour leader to further my political cause. They will be right. If you want to find outrage over how many empty seats there were on the 11am train to Newcastle on 11 August, most of the media is there to cater for you. If you are among the 58% of the population who want to renationalise the railways and other utilities, you are going to struggle – to put it mildly – to find your views reflected in the media. Consider this a modest attempt to redress the balance.
Here begins the shameless shoehorning. If you believe in free market dogma – that private ownership inevitably brings more efficiency, better quality and cheaper services – then there are two major embarrassments in Britain: the NHS and the rail industry.
There are publicly run systems across Europe that are cheaper, more efficient, and of a better quality than ours
Related: Mass strikes and belligerent disputes: why it’s all kicking off on the railways | Christian Wolmar
Source: Guardian Transport
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