The RMT is calling for all outstanding open access applications to be rejected, and for the existing operators to be nationalised.

The call comes in response to new trading figures from FirstGroup, which owns Hull Trains and Lumo and is also due to launch open access services on two new routes from London to Stirling and South Wales over the next couple of years.

The Office of Rail and Road is considering a number of other applications at the moment, including more from FirstGroup as well as others from Alstom, Arriva and Virgin Trains.

The government’s public response has been mixed. The Department for Transport has declined to support most current applications and Network Rail has voiced concerns about capacity, but the Prime Minister said ‘Open access operators have huge potential to offer passengers more choice’ in answer to a question in the House of Commons on 22 May.

First, which is due to lose its final two former franchises soon, has reported that its open access revenues were up from £99.8 million in 2023-4 to £106.4 million in the last financial year, with an operating profit of £34.1 million.

RMT general secretary Eddie Dempsey said: ‘FirstGroup is cashing in off the back of a broken system where they are allowed to cherry-pick profitable routes, draining revenue from public services, and dodging proper infrastructure costs.

‘This is continued privatisation by the back door. It undermines Labour’s commitment to a publicly owned railway and keeps the gravy train running for shareholders.

‘It is time to close the loopholes, stop the profiteering, and bring all rail services into a single, publicly owned, integrated system that puts passengers and workers before private profit.

‘We want an immediate moratorium on new open access approvals and a phased integration of existing open access services into the publicly owned Great British Railways.’

FirstGroup has denied that it does not pay a full share of infrastructure costs, and says its open access services encourage more people to travel by train.

However, a recent report commissioned by state operator LNER was said to have concluded that open access operators on the East Coast Main Line would abstract more than £1 billion in revenue from LNER over the next ten years.

Readers’ comments

Don't forget that if we go back to a monolithic railway, investment would only be able to happen if the Treasury releases the money – not so likely at the moment, with the current government budgeting crisis.

David C. Smith, Bletchley, Milton Keynes

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