UK Labor Leader Corbyn Calls for Railways Renationalisation Over Rail Fare Hike

UK Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn called on Tuesday for renationalisation of the country's railways after the rail fare had been confirmed to be increased by 1.9 percent from January 2017.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — According to the Office for National Statistics, the increase is set in accordance with the level of July inflation rate.

"The Southern Rail debacle just goes to show how private transport operators cannot be trusted with having passengers' best interests at heart. Public ownership of our railways is needed now to fix the transport nightmare we are currently faced with, and we know there is overwhelming support among the British public for a people's railway," Corbyn, attending a rail fare protest outside London Bridge station, said as quoted by the Sky News television broadcaster.

Private train companies have just increased their benefits without improving services, Corbyn noted.

A survey by the UK national trade union center (TUC) revealed Tuesday that rail fares had risen by 25 percent since 2010, while average weekly earnings had increased by 12 percent.