RMT response to Virgin West Coast contract

RMT General Secretary Bob Crow on Virgin West Coast contract: "This announcement is no surprise. The Government are ideologically opposed to public ownership of the railways and, in collusion with the private train operators, have stitched up a shabby deal that will enable them to rerun the whole franchise fiasco in a years time.

"Richard Branson and his shareholders are laughing all the way to the bank. Not only have they made hundreds of millions from the rail privatisation lottery but they have now scooped the rollover as well.

"RMT will continue to fight for public ownership of the railways, a position supported by the vast majority of the British people. This short term political fix will not detract from the call for rail to be run as a public service free from the chaos and greed of privatisation."

Bob Crow added: "The government's ideological opposition to public ownership will turn the West Coast shambles into franchise anarchy.

"We are now told Virgin will cling on for a few months while an expensive, short term franchise competition is run before a further costly, long term contract exercise. We could end up with the nightmare of three different franchise holders in a few years on our most high profile rail route while tens of millions of pounds is wasted on the franchise merry go round and thousands of staff are caught in the cross fire."

"This is pure lunacy and all designed to block the logical and stable option of public ownership."