Our new polling has found that just one in five people think that Southern is suitable to run its train services. The research by Survation finds strong public support for the idea that the Southern Rail franchise should be brought into public ownership.

Just one in five people think Southern is suitable to run the service and over 50% of people think that Southern is unsuitable to run the service. Of the latter, only 1 in 5 think Southern should be replaced by another private company whilst 76% want either Southern alone, or the whole rail network, to be brought into public ownership.

Southern Rail has been engaged in a long-running dispute with trades unions over the proposed shift to Driver Only Operation (DOO) trains. The polling comes as Ian Prosser, HM Chief Inspector of Railways confirms that Office of Rail and Road thinks DOO is safe, providing suitable equipment, proper procedures and competent staff are in place.

ASLEF and RMT unions have both hit back at this conclusion, ASLEF saying safety isn't guaranteed and the RMT questioning the ORR's credibility on the issue. RMT general secretary Mick Cash is to meet Transport Minister Chris Grayling to discuss the issue. The two unions are planning three days of strikes next week to take place on 10th, 11th and 13th of January.

Last week we released polling showing that 58% of the public think that rail privatisation has failed. Just 13% think it has been a success.

Cat Hobbs, Director at We Own It, said:

“We pay huge sums into our railway yet rail bosses tell us we can't have conductors on trains to make them safer or give older and disabled passengers a helping hand. It's time we had a railway that puts people first, not profit. Southern is pushing people to breaking point while its shareholders are laughing all the way to the bank. The government needs to step in now - strip Southern of the franchise and bring it into public ownership.

Under public ownership, the East Coast line made over a billion for the public purse. So why won’t the government consider this as an option? The only reason is that they are clinging to an ideological model from the textbooks of the 1980's. It’s high time they listened to the public and brought Southern and the rest of the rail network into public ownership.”

Andy McDonald MP, Labour’s Secretary of State for Transport said:

“Money spent on our railways should be used to improve services and keep fares down, not to line the pockets of train companies. Under public ownership, the East Coast Mainline delivered for passengers and taxpayers alike, and there’s no good reason for the government not to replicate that success across the network.

So long as Southern services remain in private hands, the message to passengers from the government remains that defending privatisation is more important than providing reliable, comfortable and affordable public rail services. Passengers are demanding that services be run in the public sector as a public service, and it’s time the government listened."

Caroline Lucas, Green Party co-leader and MP for Brighton Pavilion said:

“As the Southern crisis escalates it’s become increasingly clear that this private firm has utterly failed to manage this key piece of infrastructure which hundreds of thousands of people rely on. My constituents are increasingly angry, stressed and anxious by the endless incompetence of Southern. It’s no wonder that over 75% of people want to see public ownership of our railway. For the Government to do nothing in the face of such failure would show that they are ideologically committed to the failed privatisation project, rather than seeking what’s best for passengers. We need a modern railway, owned by the people who use and run for public good, not private profit.”