11 September 2018
RMT Press Office:
Mick Cash's speech to TUC Congress on nationalisation of the railways
Mick Cash moving composite 17
supporting motion 11
And Calling for the complete nationalisation of our railways
"Congress the private railway is not just rail franchises
It’s the army of outsourced workers
exploited to feed the rail gravy train
Like the maintenance staff who make our tracks and trains safe
the agency staff who help us at the stations
the catering staff who serve our food
the cleaners working in terrible conditions,
And congress it’s the rail engineering staff
like those at Carillon whose jobs were destroyed while the bosses walked away
walked away and walked right into a plum jobs like heading up the High Speed rail joint venture
That is shameful and disgusting and should be condemned.
Congress this year is the 25th anniversary of the railways act that privatised our railway
That’s 25 years of private failure
the anniversary has been marked by
failing franchises like East Coast, GTR and Northern
timetable chaos
a meltdown in services
Chaos that has ruined lives and cost the economy
chaos that has seen our members threatened and abused for failures that are not their fault
Chaos in a year that has seen another massive hike in fares to protect profits
it’s been a year when the government have continued to wage war on rail workers and rail safety
Recklessly insisting we should do away with our guards
Well congress we are not having it
We will never give up the fight
We will not abandon passengers who rely on guards for a safe, secure and accessible railway
We stand with vulnerable passengers
We stand with older and disabled passengers
We stand with our guards taking strike action for over two years
Congress isn’t it great we now have a Labour Party where the Shadow Secretary of State and Rail Minister and many other Labour MPs now stand on the picket line
Compare that to Failing Grayling
A minister so incompetent and cowardly that he blames everyone but himself for the great rail catastrophe
He even blames rail workers for rising fares
Telling our members they should take a pay cut while the bosses profits have no limit
Well congress lets be clear
we will not pay the price for their failure
We will not pay the price of privatisation
if they attack our members pay we will fight back
we will ballot for strike action
We will win that ballot
And we will take strike action across the whole of the railway
Congress I see that Failing Grayling and Theresa May are going to have a review into the railway
Lets be clear that review has only one goal
To protect privatization and stop nationalisaiton
Congress we don’t need a review
We need a resignation
Gralylings resignation
Mays resignation
The whole government’s resignation
And replaced by a Labour government that will nationalise our railways."
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