National Express - More like national disgrace

National Express has given the keys to it's east coast mainline train set back to the government. The reason, we've got a recession & they won't makes the pots of money they hoped.

We've been here before. Railtrack went bust when the government wouldn't bale it out. What happened when the shareholders were cut out of the picture? Costs went down, service got better. I'm not anti private sector. I believe that small business is criminally ignored by all parties (too fragmented to have a block vote). I do believe that railways are a national asset and should be managed for the public good.

Ironically on the day that the wheels came off the railway privatisation, Barnet council announces it's massive "Future Shape" privatisation plan. Do they never learn? When John Major's Government privatised BR, we were promised faster, cleaner, cheaper trains.

In 1993 the fastest journey from Mill Hill to Kings Cross was 11 minutes. It's now 14 minutes. There were 8 rush hour trains an hour, now there are 5. They even had a tea trolley on some trains then.

I did a quick google of Thameslink prior to writing this blog. Turns out that there are a load of new trains for the line. They were meant to be delivered months ago, but the private company that builds them has messed up. To keep the service running, First Group have had to borrow trains from other companies. The only people who have benefitted from the cock up are the trainspotters, who are getting most excited about all of strange rolling stock turning up.

The truth is that these private companies are a disaster. I'm disgusted that after three Labour victories, with record majorities, they have not all been nationalised.

Memo to Barnet's Tories, proir to the cabinet review of future shape. If the private sector is so marvellous, why has National Express failed?