18 Aug 2025
We are, today, launching Passengers, not profit: a vision for the Railways Bill to outline reforms that the government needs to include in their upcoming Railways Bill if they are serious about delivering for passengers. It is co-authored by Christian Wolmar - rail historian and expert, the RMT union, Emily Sullivan - Association of British Commuters, Ellie Harrison - Bring Back British Rail, Dr Grace Brown - University of Glasgow researcher, Jonathan Bray - former Director, Save our Railways, and Jonathan Tyler - Passenger Transport Networks, YORK.
The vision document is prepared in advance of We Own It's MP drop-in session taking place in Jubilee Room (House of Commons), from 12 noon to 2pm, on Thursday 4th September. MPs will have an opportunity to both receive a copy of "Passengers not profit: a vision for the Railways Bill" and speak with its expert authors about how MPs can make sure the government's Railways Bill truly delivers lower fares, better connections, accessibility and integration in our railway.
This government is bringing 30 years of failed rail privatisation to an end. Research from Transport for Quality of Life [1] the RMT and even the last government’s Williams-Shapps Plan for Rail have variously shown that we lose between £1.2 and £1.5 billion to profits and waste per year due exclusively to privatisation, enough to cut rail fares for passengers by 18%.
As Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander has said, “We’re going to wave goodbye to 30 years worth of inefficiency, waste, passenger frustration, and we’re going to step really confidently towards a new future for the railways.” [2]
It’s exciting that the government is delivering public ownership, backed by 3 out of 4 people in the UK. [3]
But there are huge risks for the government here too. Public ownership of rail franchises is absolutely necessary, but that policy change alone is not sufficient to deliver the “new future” that passengers in England, Wales and Scotland are desperate for.
Without the right implementation and package of broader reforms, the results could disappoint passengers. Public ownership must be a clear success and it must be seen as such.
This vision for the railways therefore has three demands for the government:
- Be ambitious for our railway, investing at the level of other European countries like Switzerland, expanding lines and reducing fares so that taking the train becomes the easy option.
- Deliver the benefits of public ownership – cross subsidy using profits to provide more services, integration, collaboration, efficient planning and a vision for the whole network. The reforms outlined in this document rely on the government recognising and choosing these benefits instead of continuing with disintegration and chaos. This means saying goodbye to competition law from 1993, and instead prioritising economic, social and environmental benefits like increasing services for rural communities and providing access to disabled passengers. It means saying no to continued private profits for rail operators and rolling stock companies.
- Listen to passengers as we kickstart this overdue conversation about what public ownership should look like, and give us a new democratic watchdog and representation in Great British Railways.
The vision has been created by bringing together rail experts and campaigners to call for a range of policies that will get this country to its final destination: a successful railway that we can all be proud of.
If you are an MP, please read this vision and get in touch if you are willing to push for legislation that delivers what is needed through the Railways Bill this autumn. We would be hugely grateful for your support.
If you are a passenger, please read and share this vision, add your ideas on our website and ask your MP to read it. Let’s show the government what kind of railway we deserve and prove that passengers need to be at the heart of it.
