
7 January 2020
RMT Press Office:
RMT demands public sector takeover of SWR as accounts filed today show private operator is going bust
RAIL UNION RMT has demanded an urgent public sector takeover of South Western Railway as accounts filed today show that the current private operator is on course to go bust.
Deloitte, the companies own auditors, said that South Western faces “material uncertainty” over whether it can continue operating.
RMT General Secretary Mick Cash said:
“Rather than allowing South Western Railway to collapse into chaos RMT is demanding that the existing operator is stripped of the franchise with the public sector taking over as soon as possible. The alternative is Britain's biggest rail franchise crashing into the buffers with dire consequences for passengers and staff alike.
“This comes the day after the new Managing Director of SWR, Mark Hopwood, openly threatened to sack hundreds of RMT guards and hire in a new army of staff who will bend to his demands on compromising safety.
"Instead of threatening our members the SWR company should be packing their things, clearing their desks and making way for a public operator putting safety and services first.”
Ends.
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