Labour’s shadow transport secretary Michael Dugher has promised that he will renationalise UK railways if his party wins the General Election in May.

While Mr Dugher does not plan to reinstate British Rail, he said there would be an investigation into an alternative way of running franchises, and the Rail Delivery Group would be scrapped.

Under the proposals, public sector operators would be able to bid for franchises alongside private interests.

The Conservatives have criticised the plans, with a spokesperson saying the “woolly idea would create chaos on infrastructure that is so vital to passengers and our economy”.

Despite this, Mr Dugher said: “The public sector will be running sections of our rail network as soon as we can do that.” He also branded Stagecoach, which operates bus and rail services in some areas of the country, “boneheads”.
A recent YouGov poll showed that 60 per cent of the public support renationalisation, with only 20 per cent expressing definite opposition.