14 September 2016
RMT Press Office:
Rail union RMT takes fight for guards and rail safety onto the floor of TUC Congress in Brighton.
RAIL UNION RMT will today take a motion onto the floor of the annual TUC Congress in Brighton calling for full support for the guards on Southern Rail fighting for jobs and safety with a demand for public ownership of buses and rail to end the privatised chaos that is paralysing Britain's transport services.
The motion also applauds the long-running fight by guards and their colleagues on Scotrail for safe rail services across Scotland and pledges support for all groups of workers on rail and tube standing firm against profiteering and cuts.
In a scathing attack on Govia Thameslink Railways, and their cheerleaders in Government, RMT General Secretary Mick Cash will say:
"We are facing the most concerted attack on rail workers and passengers in living memory.The government and train operators have declared war on the rail unions and they don’t give a damn if passengers are collateral damage
"How else can we explain the scandal that is GTR southern, the worse performing train company in the country?
"Rammed out, late, expensive and so unpopular that passenger protests in Tory shires are a regular event. So toxic that even Tory MPs have called for the service to be nationalised. So corrupt that Southern were given the green light by Government to tear up the franchise agreement and create chaos by cancelling 350 trains a day
"So rotten that instead of taking responsibility they have taken out adverts in newspapers attacking their own staff and telling lies about staff sickness, So despicable that even the rail minister resigned in shame.
Cash will launch an attack on the Government announcing a £20 million taxpayer bail-out of the Southern operation just 24 hours before the parent company confirmed profits of £100 million.
"We don’t want politicians playing politics with our bus and rail industry.
"We don’t what half measures. We want a national, integrated transport system and we want all our buses and railway under public ownership."
ENDS
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