5 Nov 2025
Responding to the government's announcement on Great British Railways, Cat Hobbs Director of We Own It said:
“We are excited that the government is setting up Great British Railways, owned by the public, for the public. We hope this legislation will launch our railway into a new era in which passengers come before private shareholder profits.
After 30 years of failed privatisation, this is a once in a lifetime opportunity to get the railway this country deserves. But public ownership is just the starting point for this journey.
Alongside putting passengers over profits, the government needs a vision for the future of the railway. That means cutting fares and reopening lines with levels of investment that match other European countries.
It’s brilliant that the government is promising a strengthened passenger watchdog and we look forward to seeing what this means in practice - passengers need real representation and a seat at the top table of Great British Railways.
And public ownership won’t work if private companies are allowed to cling on so the government must end wasteful competition on the railway and create Great British Trains so that we have publicly owned rolling stock.”
Read our report on rail here - Passengers not Profit: A vision for the railways bill and email your MP to ask them to read it too.
