RAIL UNION RMT today demanded that the Government call a halt to the 18 month long saga of the Siemens/Thameslink fleet contract after it emerged that it has been stitched together by the same group of Ministers and Government officials responsible for the collapse of the West Coast main line franchising deal.

RMT is calling for the Thameslink contract, which will not be signed off until the New Year at the earliest, 18 months after it was awarded in principle to German outfit Siemens, to be handed to Bombardier in Derby, protecting the future of the last train builder in the nation that gave the railways to the world.

RMT, which this morning called for the West Coast route to be handed to the publicly owned Directly Operated Railways, also wants to see an investigation into the relationship between the DFT, the train operators and other private rail companies in the wake of today’s Government humiliation.

RMT General Secretary Bob Crow said today:

“The game is up for rail privatisation, the casino should be closed and the multi-billion pound lottery that has brought Britain’s railways to their knees should now be shut down for good.

“RMT wants to see the current mess of individual franchises brought under one single, publicly-owned umbrella run in the public interest and not for private gain. We now have that opportunity. The renationalistaion of West and East Coast’s should be just a part of that process.

“Meanwhile, the botched Thameslink deal should be the next fiasco called to a halt and that work should be redirected as a matter of urgency to Bombardier in Derby to protect the future of UK train building.

“An investigation into the relationship between all of these private companies and the DFT is also essential if we are going to clean out the stables. A starting point would be a forensic look at why everyone around the industry knew that First were going to get the West Coast deal well before the Government even announced it. The whole sordid process stinks.”