A passenger-led group has exposed that the government’s ongoing expansion of so-called Great British Railways is little more than an exercise in PR. This is because the Labour Party government is looking to drop a key component of it – meaning that the organisation will have no obligation to operate under “public interest duties”. That is, Great British Railways is abandoning key commitments for disabled and poor people – and will be little more than another corporate vessel.
Great British Railways: already looking not-so great
As the Association of British Commuters (ABC) wrote, Great British Railways under the Labour Party is now not all that it seems. ABC wrote:
Last week, the Department for Transport (DfT) launched a consultation on the legislation for Great British Railways (GBR). It has since become clear that the DfT dropped GBR’s headline ‘public interest duties’ from the plan – a major setback for socioeconomic value, accessibility, and environment.
It went on to say that:
The headline promise of the previous government was that Great British Railways (GBR) would be ‘a guiding mind…responsible for running the railways safely and efficiently to maximise social and economic value.’ This ‘overarching’ ‘public interest duty‘ was to be set out in the GBR Licence, alongside other core duties towards accessibility and environment, all monitored and enforced by the Office of Rail and Road (ORR). It was a headline commitment from the 2021 White Paper on GBR until the Feb 2024 Plan for Rail.
Yet now, Labour has dropped all of that. ABC noted that:
The new GBR consultation picks up where the previous government’s Plan left off – except there is no mention that the headline public interest duties ever existed, let alone that they received such widespread support from the public. The DfT now appears to be going in the opposite direction, with the new consultation stating that “GBR will…be subject to a substantively streamlined and simplified licence” under “a guiding principle…focused on the minimum viable set of conditions that are required for safety, performance (i.e. reliability and cancellations), efficiency, and passenger experience…. substantially reducing the regulatory burden.”
So, what does this all mean?
Corporatised rail network
The recent DfT consultation on the establishment of Great British Railways marks a significant and troubling departure from previously stated commitments to prioritise public interest, accessibility, and environmental concerns within the UK’s rail network. This shift not only undermines the foundational goals of Great British Railways but also raises serious questions about the government’s dedication to creating an inclusive and sustainable transportation system.
In the 2021 White Paper, Great British Railways was envisioned as a “guiding mind” for the railways, entrusted with operating them safely and efficiently to “maximize social and economic value.” This overarching public interest duty was to be enshrined in Great British Railways’ license, ensuring that socioeconomic benefits remained central to its operations. However, the current consultation conspicuously omits this critical duty, signaling a retreat from the commitment to place public welfare at the forefront of rail management.
The absence of this duty is particularly alarming given that previous consultations revealed widespread public support for such a mandate. The DfT’s decision to exclude it not only disregards public opinion but also suggests a pivot towards prioritising efficiency and performance metrics over the broader social and economic impacts of the rail system.
Disabled people: thrown under the Great British Railways
Accessibility appears to be the most adversely affected by the DfT’s revised approach. Earlier pledges included integrating the Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Committee (DPTAC) as a statutory advisor to Great British Railways and mandating it to engage directly with disabled people and their representative organisations. These commitments aimed to embed accessibility into Great British Railways’ strategic framework, ensuring that the needs of disabled passengers were not only considered but prioritised.
The current consultation, however, abandons these promises. There is a conspicuous lack of clarity regarding which body will oversee accessibility—be it the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) or Transport Focus—leading to potential regulatory ambiguities and lapses in accountability. This omission is a stark regression from the goal of fostering an inclusive rail network and raises concerns about the government’s commitment to upholding the rights and dignity of disabled individuals.
Environmental stewardship was intended to be a cornerstone of Great British Railways’ responsibilities, with explicit duties to consider environmental principles in all operations. The current consultation’s failure to reaffirm this duty indicates a deprioritisation of environmental concerns at a time when sustainable practices are imperative. This neglect not only contradicts global efforts to combat climate change but also undermines the potential of the rail network to serve as a green alternative to more polluting modes of transport.
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The DfT: a consultation in name only
The truncated eight-week consultation period further exacerbates these issues, providing insufficient time for meaningful public engagement, especially from disabled communities who are disproportionately affected by these changes. The technical jargon and focus on regulatory specifics render the document inaccessible to the general public, effectively silencing the voices of those who rely on and are most impacted by the rail system.
This approach mirrors previous instances where the DfT has been criticised for inadequate consultation processes. Notably, the 2023 attempt to close all ticket offices in England faced widespread public backlash and was ultimately abandoned due to breaches of equality law. The current consultation’s narrow scope and opaque language suggest a continued pattern of sidelining public input in favor of industry interests.
The DfT’s current trajectory with Great British Railways represents a significant retreat from its foundational promises to prioritise public interest, accessibility, and environmental sustainability. By stripping away these core duties, the government risks perpetuating a rail system that serves private and industrial interests at the expense of the public good.
Featured image via the Canary
