comment by The Welsh Xavi (U15412)
posted 14 minutes ago
The Tories have been useless, but I like what they are planning with sending illegal immigrants to Rwanda and the welfare state / getting the bone idle into work etc
-----
You actually like a scheme that is going to cost £500m to relocate all of 300 people?
----------------------------------------------------------------------
The appeal to the nativist section of the electorate is never about addressing and solving problems. It focuses on symbolic acts, and increasingly on performative cruelty. Immigration policy over the last decade has been headlined by more and more extreme ideas from brainstorming sessions on how to be mean to foreigners.
comment by FieldsofAnfieldRd (U18971)
posted 12 minutes ago
"The question of whether a nationalised train operator can run more effectively and provide better service is always debateable because generally the public sector is less efficient and less cost effective than the private"
France, Germany and Spain all have nationalised operators who run services more efficient than anything we have by comparison.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
It’s a myth made up by Tories
comment by Red Russian (U4715)
posted 42 seconds ago
comment by The Welsh Xavi (U15412)
posted 14 minutes ago
The Tories have been useless, but I like what they are planning with sending illegal immigrants to Rwanda and the welfare state / getting the bone idle into work etc
-----
You actually like a scheme that is going to cost £500m to relocate all of 300 people?
----------------------------------------------------------------------
The appeal to the nativist section of the electorate is never about addressing and solving problems. It focuses on symbolic acts, and increasingly on performative cruelty. Immigration policy over the last decade has been headlined by more and more extreme ideas from brainstorming sessions on how to be mean to foreigners.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Seems Ireland are up in arms now that migrants could decide to land on their shores instead of the UK now.
The whole thing is fecked, I saw an article today from a father who lost his daughter in a crossing. They've been in Europe for over 15 years, in Sweden, Belgium, France and their only option was to cross to the UK or be deported to Iraq.....make it make sense for me please.
comment by Busby (U19985)
posted 3 minutes ago
comment by FieldsofAnfieldRd (U18971)
posted 7 minutes ago
"The question of whether a nationalised train operator can run more effectively and provide better service is always debateable because generally the public sector is less efficient and less cost effective than the private"
France, Germany and Spain all have nationalised operators who run services more efficient than anything we have by comparison.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
I got a first class, anytime return from Wolverhampton to Euston recently, £225.
Fecks that all about? Used to pay £60.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Part of it is the Tories making train companies abide by the RPI.
comment by FieldsofAnfieldRd (U18971)
posted 11 minutes ago
"The question of whether a nationalised train operator can run more effectively and provide better service is always debateable because generally the public sector is less efficient and less cost effective than the private"
France, Germany and Spain all have nationalised operators who run services more efficient than anything we have by comparison.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
All those countries have a different rail infrastructure to the UK and evolved it in a completely different way. The fact is we didn’t invest the money needed to overhaul the ageing infrastructure back when the railways were nationalised and we certainly haven’t invested adequately enough under privatisation.
It would cost a fortune to get our rail services working like those countries - i don’t think tjat money isn’t going to come from nationalising the rail service because I just don’t think any government has or is willing to spend it
comment by Devonshirespur (U6316)
posted 18 minutes ago
comment by The Welsh Xavi (U15412)
posted 18 minutes ago
comment by Chris H (U15205)
posted 35 minutes ago
comment by Robbing Hoody - I taught Szoboszlai how to cus... (U6374)
posted 1 minute ago
Through gritted teeth Pabour, in the faint hope that they keep their word and renationalise public services.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Haven't they already gone back on most of that?
----------------------------------------------------------------------
No they announced just last week in fact that they will renationalise railways. I believe they also still plan to create a nationalised energy company.
The issue is it'll cost an absolute shed load to buy up all the contracts.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Will they not just take back the contracts as they expire?
I heard a rail expert explain last week that a train ticket carries just 12p of profit on average.
Nationalised or not, unless public transport is subsidised, ticket prices will not drop as a result of nationalisation and it will not be an 'earner' for the public purse.
The question of whether a nationalised train operator can run more effectively and provide better service is always debateable because generally the public sector is less efficient and less cost effective than the private
----------------------------------------------------------------------
I believe that's what they're planning on do, and rail runs out in the next couple of years which is why they've pledged it.
Not sure on water and energy but assume it's not for a while which is why they haven't pledged it, as the costs could be too much given the current state of the economy.
comment by Robbing Hoody - I taught Szoboszlai how to cushion half volleys (U6374)
posted 1 minute ago
comment by Busby (U19985)
posted 3 minutes ago
comment by FieldsofAnfieldRd (U18971)
posted 7 minutes ago
"The question of whether a nationalised train operator can run more effectively and provide better service is always debateable because generally the public sector is less efficient and less cost effective than the private"
France, Germany and Spain all have nationalised operators who run services more efficient than anything we have by comparison.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
I got a first class, anytime return from Wolverhampton to Euston recently, £225.
Fecks that all about? Used to pay £60.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Part of it is the Tories making train companies abide by the RPI.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Just like subsidising record profits for energy suppliers using tax payers money.
They spin that to look like they're helping people out, how about lower the cap so they can't profiteer.
comment by Jerry O'Driscoll (U1734)
posted 15 minutes ago
comment by 98 Problems (and promotion ain’t one) (U12353)
posted 5 minutes ago
Isn’t a vote for reform effectively putting Labour in power?
----------------------------------------------------------------------
no if we all of us with common sense vote for reform like we did with brexit then we will win you're country need's you so get voting we are the majority its a fix if we dont win
----------------------------------------------------------------------
But it won’t happen. All you’ll do is split the vote and hand labour a landslide
comment by FieldsofAnfieldRd (U18971)
posted 10 minutes ago
"The question of whether a nationalised train operator can run more effectively and provide better service is always debateable because generally the public sector is less efficient and less cost effective than the private"
France, Germany and Spain all have nationalised operators who run services more efficient than anything we have by comparison.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
It's clear there's no magic solution to turning around failing privatised services. They require sustained, heavy, long-term investment. No government is going to fix them in the space of one term. But it should be pretty clear by now that the Thatcherite panacea of private ownership, on the basis that the free market runs things best, has catastrophically failed. Private shareholders have extracted billions from industries that continue to receive huge state subsidies, while presiding over lack of investment in the future viability of those services. Our rivers are dying and beaches are unsuitable for bathing because of the negligence and greed of the water companies. Our railways are an embarrassment. Much of the failing NHS is run by private contractors already. All of these utilities and services are taking tax-payer money and underinvesting in their operations and infrastructure, while syphoning off profits to shareholders.
comment by 98 Problems (and promotion ain’t one) (U12353)
posted 6 seconds ago
comment by FieldsofAnfieldRd (U18971)
posted 11 minutes ago
"The question of whether a nationalised train operator can run more effectively and provide better service is always debateable because generally the public sector is less efficient and less cost effective than the private"
France, Germany and Spain all have nationalised operators who run services more efficient than anything we have by comparison.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
All those countries have a different rail infrastructure to the UK and evolved it in a completely different way. The fact is we didn’t invest the money needed to overhaul the ageing infrastructure back when the railways were nationalised and we certainly haven’t invested adequately enough under privatisation.
It would cost a fortune to get our rail services working like those countries - i don’t think tjat money isn’t going to come from nationalising the rail service because I just don’t think any government has or is willing to spend it
----------------------------------------------------------------------
In Spain they build huge bridges across valleys and tunnel through mountains to install high speed rail lines that reach speeds of 180kph.
We got HS2.
comment by FieldsofAnfieldRd (U18971)
posted 4 seconds ago
comment by 98 Problems (and promotion ain’t one) (U12353)
posted 6 seconds ago
comment by FieldsofAnfieldRd (U18971)
posted 11 minutes ago
"The question of whether a nationalised train operator can run more effectively and provide better service is always debateable because generally the public sector is less efficient and less cost effective than the private"
France, Germany and Spain all have nationalised operators who run services more efficient than anything we have by comparison.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
All those countries have a different rail infrastructure to the UK and evolved it in a completely different way. The fact is we didn’t invest the money needed to overhaul the ageing infrastructure back when the railways were nationalised and we certainly haven’t invested adequately enough under privatisation.
It would cost a fortune to get our rail services working like those countries - i don’t think tjat money isn’t going to come from nationalising the rail service because I just don’t think any government has or is willing to spend it
----------------------------------------------------------------------
In Spain they build huge bridges across valleys and tunnel through mountains to install high speed rail lines that reach speeds of 180kph.
We got HS2.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
HS2 that nobody wanted, or needed.
comment by FieldsofAnfieldRd (U18971)
posted 12 minutes ago
"The question of whether a nationalised train operator can run more effectively and provide better service is always debateable because generally the public sector is less efficient and less cost effective than the private"
France, Germany and Spain all have nationalised operators who run services more efficient than anything we have by comparison.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
SNCF has in the last 5 years had reform that has seen about 35bn euros of debt absorbed by the French Government, and still carries about 25bn in debt.
I believe Germany 's Deutsche Bahn makes substantial losses, in the billions.
Problem with HS2 was they started London side first.
If they'd focused on the North first, the area that actually needs greater rail connectivity, then if they needed to cut back and stop the project early, they'd have still actually achieved something.
Instead we're going to be left in a situation where all they've done is knock 20 minutes off getting from Birmingham to London.
comment by Busby (U19985)
posted 3 minutes ago
comment by FieldsofAnfieldRd (U18971)
posted 4 seconds ago
comment by 98 Problems (and promotion ain’t one) (U12353)
posted 6 seconds ago
comment by FieldsofAnfieldRd (U18971)
posted 11 minutes ago
"The question of whether a nationalised train operator can run more effectively and provide better service is always debateable because generally the public sector is less efficient and less cost effective than the private"
France, Germany and Spain all have nationalised operators who run services more efficient than anything we have by comparison.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
All those countries have a different rail infrastructure to the UK and evolved it in a completely different way. The fact is we didn’t invest the money needed to overhaul the ageing infrastructure back when the railways were nationalised and we certainly haven’t invested adequately enough under privatisation.
It would cost a fortune to get our rail services working like those countries - i don’t think tjat money isn’t going to come from nationalising the rail service because I just don’t think any government has or is willing to spend it
----------------------------------------------------------------------
In Spain they build huge bridges across valleys and tunnel through mountains to install high speed rail lines that reach speeds of 180kph.
We got HS2.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
HS2 that nobody wanted, or needed.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
UK desperately needed HS2, at least the original version, not the truncated fast line to the midlands.
Whoever gets my local Tory out. So Labour.
comment by Devonshirespur (U6316)
posted 11 seconds ago
comment by Busby (U19985)
posted 3 minutes ago
comment by FieldsofAnfieldRd (U18971)
posted 4 seconds ago
comment by 98 Problems (and promotion ain’t one) (U12353)
posted 6 seconds ago
comment by FieldsofAnfieldRd (U18971)
posted 11 minutes ago
"The question of whether a nationalised train operator can run more effectively and provide better service is always debateable because generally the public sector is less efficient and less cost effective than the private"
France, Germany and Spain all have nationalised operators who run services more efficient than anything we have by comparison.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
All those countries have a different rail infrastructure to the UK and evolved it in a completely different way. The fact is we didn’t invest the money needed to overhaul the ageing infrastructure back when the railways were nationalised and we certainly haven’t invested adequately enough under privatisation.
It would cost a fortune to get our rail services working like those countries - i don’t think tjat money isn’t going to come from nationalising the rail service because I just don’t think any government has or is willing to spend it
----------------------------------------------------------------------
In Spain they build huge bridges across valleys and tunnel through mountains to install high speed rail lines that reach speeds of 180kph.
We got HS2.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
HS2 that nobody wanted, or needed.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
UK desperately needed HS2, at least the original version, not the truncated fast line to the midlands.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Didn’t really though did it, UK is a tiny country, we’re not travelling vast distances, what the UK. needs is a well connected rail system that operates efficiently
comment by Robbing Hoody - I taught Szoboszlai how to cushion half volleys (U6374)
posted 9 minutes ago
comment by Busby (U19985)
posted 3 minutes ago
comment by FieldsofAnfieldRd (U18971)
posted 7 minutes ago
"The question of whether a nationalised train operator can run more effectively and provide better service is always debateable because generally the public sector is less efficient and less cost effective than the private"
France, Germany and Spain all have nationalised operators who run services more efficient than anything we have by comparison.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
I got a first class, anytime return from Wolverhampton to Euston recently, £225.
Fecks that all about? Used to pay £60.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Part of it is the Tories making train companies abide by the RPI.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Busby
First train
06:57
Last train
21:57
Departure station
Valencia
Arrival station
Málaga
Journey time
From 5h 9m
Distance
291 miles (468 km)
Frequency
14 trains per day
Changes
1 change
Price
From €26.90
I’ll be voting Kahn for London Mayor but then Green for the GE.
comment by Devonshirespur (U6316)
posted 3 minutes ago
comment by Busby (U19985)
posted 3 minutes ago
comment by FieldsofAnfieldRd (U18971)
posted 4 seconds ago
comment by 98 Problems (and promotion ain’t one) (U12353)
posted 6 seconds ago
comment by FieldsofAnfieldRd (U18971)
posted 11 minutes ago
"The question of whether a nationalised train operator can run more effectively and provide better service is always debateable because generally the public sector is less efficient and less cost effective than the private"
France, Germany and Spain all have nationalised operators who run services more efficient than anything we have by comparison.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
All those countries have a different rail infrastructure to the UK and evolved it in a completely different way. The fact is we didn’t invest the money needed to overhaul the ageing infrastructure back when the railways were nationalised and we certainly haven’t invested adequately enough under privatisation.
It would cost a fortune to get our rail services working like those countries - i don’t think tjat money isn’t going to come from nationalising the rail service because I just don’t think any government has or is willing to spend it
----------------------------------------------------------------------
In Spain they build huge bridges across valleys and tunnel through mountains to install high speed rail lines that reach speeds of 180kph.
We got HS2.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
HS2 that nobody wanted, or needed.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
UK desperately needed HS2, at least the original version, not the truncated fast line to the midlands.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Not really IMO. Lime.St to Euston in just over 2 hours is nothing. It's the efficiency and cost that needs improving not journey time.
comment by Devonshirespur (U6316)
posted 20 minutes ago
comment by FieldsofAnfieldRd (U18971)
posted 12 minutes ago
"The question of whether a nationalised train operator can run more effectively and provide better service is always debateable because generally the public sector is less efficient and less cost effective than the private"
France, Germany and Spain all have nationalised operators who run services more efficient than anything we have by comparison.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
SNCF has in the last 5 years had reform that has seen about 35bn euros of debt absorbed by the French Government, and still carries about 25bn in debt.
I believe Germany 's Deutsche Bahn makes substantial losses, in the billions.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
It took 30 seconds to google that SNCF announced record profit last year so….
comment by Busby (U19985)
posted 5 minutes ago
comment by Red Russian (U4715)
posted 42 seconds ago
comment by The Welsh Xavi (U15412)
posted 14 minutes ago
The Tories have been useless, but I like what they are planning with sending illegal immigrants to Rwanda and the welfare state / getting the bone idle into work etc
-----
You actually like a scheme that is going to cost £500m to relocate all of 300 people?
----------------------------------------------------------------------
The appeal to the nativist section of the electorate is never about addressing and solving problems. It focuses on symbolic acts, and increasingly on performative cruelty. Immigration policy over the last decade has been headlined by more and more extreme ideas from brainstorming sessions on how to be mean to foreigners.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Seems Ireland are up in arms now that migrants could decide to land on their shores instead of the UK now.
The whole thing is fecked, I saw an article today from a father who lost his daughter in a crossing. They've been in Europe for over 15 years, in Sweden, Belgium, France and their only option was to cross to the UK or be deported to Iraq.....make it make sense for me please.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
It's clear there's no policy magic wand that makes this issue go away, and we should be very wary of any politicians who claim they can solve it with a few bold moves. Some thoughts:
We live in a world with a great deal of instability and economic disparity. Human nature has always prompted people to want to move from places that are more precarious to places where they can lead a safer, more prosperous life. All of us are descended from people who responded to that urge. I think we need to have a more calm and sensible understanding of this basic reality. We should play our part in helping make the whole world more stable, peaceful and prosperous, while understanding the limitations of our capacity to do this. We should understand that the flow of migrants into Europe as a whole is going to continue and grow. We should refrain from demonising these people. We should work multilaterally as far as possible to manage that process, create safe corridors and official channels to apply for asylum. Many of the people making dangerous journeys are doing so because legitimate avenues to apply have been shut down.
And I think we need to be honest and clear-headed about our aims. Is it that we want to stop the boats, because of the danger to those travelling and the inability to regulate who is entering the country? Or is it that we don't want to accept asylum seekers and other types of migrants in general? I think what we have lacked in this country is a higher level discourse about the impacts of migration on our economy and society. Generally, the public discussion has been dominated by alarmist voices - as reflected by the fact that all major political parties tend to frame their communications around limiting / cracking down on immigration. Opinion polls have informed us over the last couple of decades that much of the public has an exaggerated perception of the numbers of migrants in the country, and factually incorrect beliefs about the net economic impact of migration, e.g. the notion that immigrants are typically sponging off the state is belied by the fact that they are net contributors to the economy and much less likely to draw benefits than the UK-born population. We have dishonest characters like Farage presenting restrictions on immigration as a solution to all of our problems. The NHS is in crisis? UKIP headline policy is to stop health tourism. Sure, you can decide whether you have a problem of foreigners getting access to free treatment, but the total cost of this has never been more than a drop in the ocean compared with the financial shortfalls in our health system. And this kind of warped understanding of material impact of immigration has led to a politics where our NHS relies on migrant workers to function, while foreigners *legally* working in this country (including some working in the NHS) have to pay a supplement to get medical treatment on the NHS even though they pay UK taxes like the rest of us.
That's a very rambling answer. In short: we need to ask ourselves how much of the immigration issue is really the problem that the emotive voices claim it is; and we need to be realistic that we're dealing with something like a gravitational force over which no one has much control.
I'm more Plaid Cymru than anything else but, because it's a UK election and Labour have more chance of ousting the Tories here than Plaid, I shall give me vote to Labour. I really do think we'd be better off independent though but a story for another day that is.
As I understand it, HS2 was about adding capacity, not just speed. It's an extra line, but also one that can carry more trains per day because they are faster. Inability to scale up = cap on supply, which is one of the inflationary pressures on ticket prices.
I’d genuinely like to hear from a Tory voter about why they would vote that way because I find it insane.
I’m yet to see anything other than ‘but Labour’ tbh
comment by Red Russian (U4715)
posted 17 seconds ago
As I understand it, HS2 was about adding capacity, not just speed. It's an extra line, but also one that can carry more trains per day because they are faster. Inability to scale up = cap on supply, which is one of the inflationary pressures on ticket prices.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
HS2 was and is needed. The Tories have now halted work on it despite literally millions of buckets bring in the ground.
Sign in if you want to comment
Elections this year
Page 3 of 35
6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10
posted on 1/5/24
comment by The Welsh Xavi (U15412)
posted 14 minutes ago
The Tories have been useless, but I like what they are planning with sending illegal immigrants to Rwanda and the welfare state / getting the bone idle into work etc
-----
You actually like a scheme that is going to cost £500m to relocate all of 300 people?
----------------------------------------------------------------------
The appeal to the nativist section of the electorate is never about addressing and solving problems. It focuses on symbolic acts, and increasingly on performative cruelty. Immigration policy over the last decade has been headlined by more and more extreme ideas from brainstorming sessions on how to be mean to foreigners.
posted on 1/5/24
comment by FieldsofAnfieldRd (U18971)
posted 12 minutes ago
"The question of whether a nationalised train operator can run more effectively and provide better service is always debateable because generally the public sector is less efficient and less cost effective than the private"
France, Germany and Spain all have nationalised operators who run services more efficient than anything we have by comparison.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
It’s a myth made up by Tories
posted on 1/5/24
comment by Red Russian (U4715)
posted 42 seconds ago
comment by The Welsh Xavi (U15412)
posted 14 minutes ago
The Tories have been useless, but I like what they are planning with sending illegal immigrants to Rwanda and the welfare state / getting the bone idle into work etc
-----
You actually like a scheme that is going to cost £500m to relocate all of 300 people?
----------------------------------------------------------------------
The appeal to the nativist section of the electorate is never about addressing and solving problems. It focuses on symbolic acts, and increasingly on performative cruelty. Immigration policy over the last decade has been headlined by more and more extreme ideas from brainstorming sessions on how to be mean to foreigners.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Seems Ireland are up in arms now that migrants could decide to land on their shores instead of the UK now.
The whole thing is fecked, I saw an article today from a father who lost his daughter in a crossing. They've been in Europe for over 15 years, in Sweden, Belgium, France and their only option was to cross to the UK or be deported to Iraq.....make it make sense for me please.
posted on 1/5/24
comment by Busby (U19985)
posted 3 minutes ago
comment by FieldsofAnfieldRd (U18971)
posted 7 minutes ago
"The question of whether a nationalised train operator can run more effectively and provide better service is always debateable because generally the public sector is less efficient and less cost effective than the private"
France, Germany and Spain all have nationalised operators who run services more efficient than anything we have by comparison.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
I got a first class, anytime return from Wolverhampton to Euston recently, £225.
Fecks that all about? Used to pay £60.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Part of it is the Tories making train companies abide by the RPI.
posted on 1/5/24
comment by FieldsofAnfieldRd (U18971)
posted 11 minutes ago
"The question of whether a nationalised train operator can run more effectively and provide better service is always debateable because generally the public sector is less efficient and less cost effective than the private"
France, Germany and Spain all have nationalised operators who run services more efficient than anything we have by comparison.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
All those countries have a different rail infrastructure to the UK and evolved it in a completely different way. The fact is we didn’t invest the money needed to overhaul the ageing infrastructure back when the railways were nationalised and we certainly haven’t invested adequately enough under privatisation.
It would cost a fortune to get our rail services working like those countries - i don’t think tjat money isn’t going to come from nationalising the rail service because I just don’t think any government has or is willing to spend it
posted on 1/5/24
comment by Devonshirespur (U6316)
posted 18 minutes ago
comment by The Welsh Xavi (U15412)
posted 18 minutes ago
comment by Chris H (U15205)
posted 35 minutes ago
comment by Robbing Hoody - I taught Szoboszlai how to cus... (U6374)
posted 1 minute ago
Through gritted teeth Pabour, in the faint hope that they keep their word and renationalise public services.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Haven't they already gone back on most of that?
----------------------------------------------------------------------
No they announced just last week in fact that they will renationalise railways. I believe they also still plan to create a nationalised energy company.
The issue is it'll cost an absolute shed load to buy up all the contracts.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Will they not just take back the contracts as they expire?
I heard a rail expert explain last week that a train ticket carries just 12p of profit on average.
Nationalised or not, unless public transport is subsidised, ticket prices will not drop as a result of nationalisation and it will not be an 'earner' for the public purse.
The question of whether a nationalised train operator can run more effectively and provide better service is always debateable because generally the public sector is less efficient and less cost effective than the private
----------------------------------------------------------------------
I believe that's what they're planning on do, and rail runs out in the next couple of years which is why they've pledged it.
Not sure on water and energy but assume it's not for a while which is why they haven't pledged it, as the costs could be too much given the current state of the economy.
posted on 1/5/24
comment by Robbing Hoody - I taught Szoboszlai how to cushion half volleys (U6374)
posted 1 minute ago
comment by Busby (U19985)
posted 3 minutes ago
comment by FieldsofAnfieldRd (U18971)
posted 7 minutes ago
"The question of whether a nationalised train operator can run more effectively and provide better service is always debateable because generally the public sector is less efficient and less cost effective than the private"
France, Germany and Spain all have nationalised operators who run services more efficient than anything we have by comparison.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
I got a first class, anytime return from Wolverhampton to Euston recently, £225.
Fecks that all about? Used to pay £60.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Part of it is the Tories making train companies abide by the RPI.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Just like subsidising record profits for energy suppliers using tax payers money.
They spin that to look like they're helping people out, how about lower the cap so they can't profiteer.
posted on 1/5/24
comment by Jerry O'Driscoll (U1734)
posted 15 minutes ago
comment by 98 Problems (and promotion ain’t one) (U12353)
posted 5 minutes ago
Isn’t a vote for reform effectively putting Labour in power?
----------------------------------------------------------------------
no if we all of us with common sense vote for reform like we did with brexit then we will win you're country need's you so get voting we are the majority its a fix if we dont win
----------------------------------------------------------------------
But it won’t happen. All you’ll do is split the vote and hand labour a landslide
posted on 1/5/24
comment by FieldsofAnfieldRd (U18971)
posted 10 minutes ago
"The question of whether a nationalised train operator can run more effectively and provide better service is always debateable because generally the public sector is less efficient and less cost effective than the private"
France, Germany and Spain all have nationalised operators who run services more efficient than anything we have by comparison.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
It's clear there's no magic solution to turning around failing privatised services. They require sustained, heavy, long-term investment. No government is going to fix them in the space of one term. But it should be pretty clear by now that the Thatcherite panacea of private ownership, on the basis that the free market runs things best, has catastrophically failed. Private shareholders have extracted billions from industries that continue to receive huge state subsidies, while presiding over lack of investment in the future viability of those services. Our rivers are dying and beaches are unsuitable for bathing because of the negligence and greed of the water companies. Our railways are an embarrassment. Much of the failing NHS is run by private contractors already. All of these utilities and services are taking tax-payer money and underinvesting in their operations and infrastructure, while syphoning off profits to shareholders.
posted on 1/5/24
comment by 98 Problems (and promotion ain’t one) (U12353)
posted 6 seconds ago
comment by FieldsofAnfieldRd (U18971)
posted 11 minutes ago
"The question of whether a nationalised train operator can run more effectively and provide better service is always debateable because generally the public sector is less efficient and less cost effective than the private"
France, Germany and Spain all have nationalised operators who run services more efficient than anything we have by comparison.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
All those countries have a different rail infrastructure to the UK and evolved it in a completely different way. The fact is we didn’t invest the money needed to overhaul the ageing infrastructure back when the railways were nationalised and we certainly haven’t invested adequately enough under privatisation.
It would cost a fortune to get our rail services working like those countries - i don’t think tjat money isn’t going to come from nationalising the rail service because I just don’t think any government has or is willing to spend it
----------------------------------------------------------------------
In Spain they build huge bridges across valleys and tunnel through mountains to install high speed rail lines that reach speeds of 180kph.
We got HS2.
posted on 1/5/24
comment by FieldsofAnfieldRd (U18971)
posted 4 seconds ago
comment by 98 Problems (and promotion ain’t one) (U12353)
posted 6 seconds ago
comment by FieldsofAnfieldRd (U18971)
posted 11 minutes ago
"The question of whether a nationalised train operator can run more effectively and provide better service is always debateable because generally the public sector is less efficient and less cost effective than the private"
France, Germany and Spain all have nationalised operators who run services more efficient than anything we have by comparison.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
All those countries have a different rail infrastructure to the UK and evolved it in a completely different way. The fact is we didn’t invest the money needed to overhaul the ageing infrastructure back when the railways were nationalised and we certainly haven’t invested adequately enough under privatisation.
It would cost a fortune to get our rail services working like those countries - i don’t think tjat money isn’t going to come from nationalising the rail service because I just don’t think any government has or is willing to spend it
----------------------------------------------------------------------
In Spain they build huge bridges across valleys and tunnel through mountains to install high speed rail lines that reach speeds of 180kph.
We got HS2.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
HS2 that nobody wanted, or needed.
posted on 1/5/24
comment by FieldsofAnfieldRd (U18971)
posted 12 minutes ago
"The question of whether a nationalised train operator can run more effectively and provide better service is always debateable because generally the public sector is less efficient and less cost effective than the private"
France, Germany and Spain all have nationalised operators who run services more efficient than anything we have by comparison.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
SNCF has in the last 5 years had reform that has seen about 35bn euros of debt absorbed by the French Government, and still carries about 25bn in debt.
I believe Germany 's Deutsche Bahn makes substantial losses, in the billions.
posted on 1/5/24
Problem with HS2 was they started London side first.
If they'd focused on the North first, the area that actually needs greater rail connectivity, then if they needed to cut back and stop the project early, they'd have still actually achieved something.
Instead we're going to be left in a situation where all they've done is knock 20 minutes off getting from Birmingham to London.
posted on 1/5/24
comment by Busby (U19985)
posted 3 minutes ago
comment by FieldsofAnfieldRd (U18971)
posted 4 seconds ago
comment by 98 Problems (and promotion ain’t one) (U12353)
posted 6 seconds ago
comment by FieldsofAnfieldRd (U18971)
posted 11 minutes ago
"The question of whether a nationalised train operator can run more effectively and provide better service is always debateable because generally the public sector is less efficient and less cost effective than the private"
France, Germany and Spain all have nationalised operators who run services more efficient than anything we have by comparison.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
All those countries have a different rail infrastructure to the UK and evolved it in a completely different way. The fact is we didn’t invest the money needed to overhaul the ageing infrastructure back when the railways were nationalised and we certainly haven’t invested adequately enough under privatisation.
It would cost a fortune to get our rail services working like those countries - i don’t think tjat money isn’t going to come from nationalising the rail service because I just don’t think any government has or is willing to spend it
----------------------------------------------------------------------
In Spain they build huge bridges across valleys and tunnel through mountains to install high speed rail lines that reach speeds of 180kph.
We got HS2.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
HS2 that nobody wanted, or needed.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
UK desperately needed HS2, at least the original version, not the truncated fast line to the midlands.
posted on 1/5/24
Whoever gets my local Tory out. So Labour.
posted on 1/5/24
comment by Devonshirespur (U6316)
posted 11 seconds ago
comment by Busby (U19985)
posted 3 minutes ago
comment by FieldsofAnfieldRd (U18971)
posted 4 seconds ago
comment by 98 Problems (and promotion ain’t one) (U12353)
posted 6 seconds ago
comment by FieldsofAnfieldRd (U18971)
posted 11 minutes ago
"The question of whether a nationalised train operator can run more effectively and provide better service is always debateable because generally the public sector is less efficient and less cost effective than the private"
France, Germany and Spain all have nationalised operators who run services more efficient than anything we have by comparison.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
All those countries have a different rail infrastructure to the UK and evolved it in a completely different way. The fact is we didn’t invest the money needed to overhaul the ageing infrastructure back when the railways were nationalised and we certainly haven’t invested adequately enough under privatisation.
It would cost a fortune to get our rail services working like those countries - i don’t think tjat money isn’t going to come from nationalising the rail service because I just don’t think any government has or is willing to spend it
----------------------------------------------------------------------
In Spain they build huge bridges across valleys and tunnel through mountains to install high speed rail lines that reach speeds of 180kph.
We got HS2.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
HS2 that nobody wanted, or needed.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
UK desperately needed HS2, at least the original version, not the truncated fast line to the midlands.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Didn’t really though did it, UK is a tiny country, we’re not travelling vast distances, what the UK. needs is a well connected rail system that operates efficiently
posted on 1/5/24
comment by Robbing Hoody - I taught Szoboszlai how to cushion half volleys (U6374)
posted 9 minutes ago
comment by Busby (U19985)
posted 3 minutes ago
comment by FieldsofAnfieldRd (U18971)
posted 7 minutes ago
"The question of whether a nationalised train operator can run more effectively and provide better service is always debateable because generally the public sector is less efficient and less cost effective than the private"
France, Germany and Spain all have nationalised operators who run services more efficient than anything we have by comparison.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
I got a first class, anytime return from Wolverhampton to Euston recently, £225.
Fecks that all about? Used to pay £60.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Part of it is the Tories making train companies abide by the RPI.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Busby
First train
06:57
Last train
21:57
Departure station
Valencia
Arrival station
Málaga
Journey time
From 5h 9m
Distance
291 miles (468 km)
Frequency
14 trains per day
Changes
1 change
Price
From €26.90
posted on 1/5/24
I’ll be voting Kahn for London Mayor but then Green for the GE.
posted on 1/5/24
comment by Devonshirespur (U6316)
posted 3 minutes ago
comment by Busby (U19985)
posted 3 minutes ago
comment by FieldsofAnfieldRd (U18971)
posted 4 seconds ago
comment by 98 Problems (and promotion ain’t one) (U12353)
posted 6 seconds ago
comment by FieldsofAnfieldRd (U18971)
posted 11 minutes ago
"The question of whether a nationalised train operator can run more effectively and provide better service is always debateable because generally the public sector is less efficient and less cost effective than the private"
France, Germany and Spain all have nationalised operators who run services more efficient than anything we have by comparison.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
All those countries have a different rail infrastructure to the UK and evolved it in a completely different way. The fact is we didn’t invest the money needed to overhaul the ageing infrastructure back when the railways were nationalised and we certainly haven’t invested adequately enough under privatisation.
It would cost a fortune to get our rail services working like those countries - i don’t think tjat money isn’t going to come from nationalising the rail service because I just don’t think any government has or is willing to spend it
----------------------------------------------------------------------
In Spain they build huge bridges across valleys and tunnel through mountains to install high speed rail lines that reach speeds of 180kph.
We got HS2.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
HS2 that nobody wanted, or needed.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
UK desperately needed HS2, at least the original version, not the truncated fast line to the midlands.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Not really IMO. Lime.St to Euston in just over 2 hours is nothing. It's the efficiency and cost that needs improving not journey time.
posted on 1/5/24
comment by Devonshirespur (U6316)
posted 20 minutes ago
comment by FieldsofAnfieldRd (U18971)
posted 12 minutes ago
"The question of whether a nationalised train operator can run more effectively and provide better service is always debateable because generally the public sector is less efficient and less cost effective than the private"
France, Germany and Spain all have nationalised operators who run services more efficient than anything we have by comparison.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
SNCF has in the last 5 years had reform that has seen about 35bn euros of debt absorbed by the French Government, and still carries about 25bn in debt.
I believe Germany 's Deutsche Bahn makes substantial losses, in the billions.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
It took 30 seconds to google that SNCF announced record profit last year so….
posted on 1/5/24
comment by Busby (U19985)
posted 5 minutes ago
comment by Red Russian (U4715)
posted 42 seconds ago
comment by The Welsh Xavi (U15412)
posted 14 minutes ago
The Tories have been useless, but I like what they are planning with sending illegal immigrants to Rwanda and the welfare state / getting the bone idle into work etc
-----
You actually like a scheme that is going to cost £500m to relocate all of 300 people?
----------------------------------------------------------------------
The appeal to the nativist section of the electorate is never about addressing and solving problems. It focuses on symbolic acts, and increasingly on performative cruelty. Immigration policy over the last decade has been headlined by more and more extreme ideas from brainstorming sessions on how to be mean to foreigners.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Seems Ireland are up in arms now that migrants could decide to land on their shores instead of the UK now.
The whole thing is fecked, I saw an article today from a father who lost his daughter in a crossing. They've been in Europe for over 15 years, in Sweden, Belgium, France and their only option was to cross to the UK or be deported to Iraq.....make it make sense for me please.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
It's clear there's no policy magic wand that makes this issue go away, and we should be very wary of any politicians who claim they can solve it with a few bold moves. Some thoughts:
We live in a world with a great deal of instability and economic disparity. Human nature has always prompted people to want to move from places that are more precarious to places where they can lead a safer, more prosperous life. All of us are descended from people who responded to that urge. I think we need to have a more calm and sensible understanding of this basic reality. We should play our part in helping make the whole world more stable, peaceful and prosperous, while understanding the limitations of our capacity to do this. We should understand that the flow of migrants into Europe as a whole is going to continue and grow. We should refrain from demonising these people. We should work multilaterally as far as possible to manage that process, create safe corridors and official channels to apply for asylum. Many of the people making dangerous journeys are doing so because legitimate avenues to apply have been shut down.
And I think we need to be honest and clear-headed about our aims. Is it that we want to stop the boats, because of the danger to those travelling and the inability to regulate who is entering the country? Or is it that we don't want to accept asylum seekers and other types of migrants in general? I think what we have lacked in this country is a higher level discourse about the impacts of migration on our economy and society. Generally, the public discussion has been dominated by alarmist voices - as reflected by the fact that all major political parties tend to frame their communications around limiting / cracking down on immigration. Opinion polls have informed us over the last couple of decades that much of the public has an exaggerated perception of the numbers of migrants in the country, and factually incorrect beliefs about the net economic impact of migration, e.g. the notion that immigrants are typically sponging off the state is belied by the fact that they are net contributors to the economy and much less likely to draw benefits than the UK-born population. We have dishonest characters like Farage presenting restrictions on immigration as a solution to all of our problems. The NHS is in crisis? UKIP headline policy is to stop health tourism. Sure, you can decide whether you have a problem of foreigners getting access to free treatment, but the total cost of this has never been more than a drop in the ocean compared with the financial shortfalls in our health system. And this kind of warped understanding of material impact of immigration has led to a politics where our NHS relies on migrant workers to function, while foreigners *legally* working in this country (including some working in the NHS) have to pay a supplement to get medical treatment on the NHS even though they pay UK taxes like the rest of us.
That's a very rambling answer. In short: we need to ask ourselves how much of the immigration issue is really the problem that the emotive voices claim it is; and we need to be realistic that we're dealing with something like a gravitational force over which no one has much control.
posted on 1/5/24
I'm more Plaid Cymru than anything else but, because it's a UK election and Labour have more chance of ousting the Tories here than Plaid, I shall give me vote to Labour. I really do think we'd be better off independent though but a story for another day that is.
posted on 1/5/24
As I understand it, HS2 was about adding capacity, not just speed. It's an extra line, but also one that can carry more trains per day because they are faster. Inability to scale up = cap on supply, which is one of the inflationary pressures on ticket prices.
posted on 1/5/24
I’d genuinely like to hear from a Tory voter about why they would vote that way because I find it insane.
I’m yet to see anything other than ‘but Labour’ tbh
posted on 1/5/24
comment by Red Russian (U4715)
posted 17 seconds ago
As I understand it, HS2 was about adding capacity, not just speed. It's an extra line, but also one that can carry more trains per day because they are faster. Inability to scale up = cap on supply, which is one of the inflationary pressures on ticket prices.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
HS2 was and is needed. The Tories have now halted work on it despite literally millions of buckets bring in the ground.
Page 3 of 35
6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10