Ne News
30 March 2018
At the current time, governments around the world are privatising state assets, either claiming that owning the services is a "conflict of interest" or that the private sector can do it better for lower costs. In Australia, the "conflict of interest" argument was used to justify the privatisation of Telstra and Medibank Private among others. The "private sector can do it better for lower costs" argument was used for public transport. The argument used for privatisation is "lower costs" for "consumers". When it comes to public transport, privatisation will lead to "lower fares" for "customers". Note that governments, and increasingly the mainstream media, are increasingly using the terms "consumers" and "customers" to describe citizens.
In 1999, the Victorian Government under Premier Jeff Kennett privatised the public transport system in Victoria, breaking the metropolitan train network into two (as shown in the picture on the left), breaking the metropolitan tram network into two, and breaking the metropolitan bus network into two. Even V/Line was broken up into two (freight and passenger). The Victorian Government claimed that privatising the public transport system will lead to cheaper fares for "customers". V/Line Passenger has since returned to public ownership.
However, privatisation has not lead to cheaper fares for passengers. In fact, fares has gone up faster than inflation, but successive governments (both Labor and Liberal) has claimed that privatisation has been good, and has continued this myth that privatisation of public transport has been good for "customers", and that every couple of years, new contracts are signed with these private operators.
Towards the end of last year, the Victorian Government of Premier Daniel Andrews renewed the contracts with MTR Corporation (who operates the trains under the name Metro Trains Melbourne) and Keolis Downer Rail (who operates under the name Yarra Trams), despite poor service from Metro; and in 2013, the government of Dennis Naphine signed a deal with French transport giant Transdev to operate 30 percent of buses in Melbourne, including buses previously operated by National Bus Company and Melbourne Bus Line, as well as the SmartBus orbitals previously operated by Ventura Bus Lines.
Privatisation in public transport has not been limited to Victoria. In 2017, the New South Wales Government sold off the government-run bus routes in Newcastle to Keolis Downer Rail under the name "Newcastle Transport", which now operates the former government-run routes in Newcastle as well as ferry services, and when it opens, will operate the light-rail in Newcastle. It should be noted that like in Victoria, this privatisation was done without the approval of the people affected (in fact, the government of New South Wales had no mandate to privatise public transport in Newcastle, just like the Victorian Government didn't have a mandate to privatise public transport in Victoria). In some other cities in Australia, it has currently just been the buses that has been sold off, but not the other infrastructure such as rail, but there is a possibility that these will eventually be sold off.
Of course, privatisation has also occurred in electricity and gas, in which the Kennett Government (which privatised the State Electricity Company and the Gas and Fuel Company) said that this will lead to lower prices for "customers". However, there has been price increases, and less investment in infrastructure as a result of privatisation. But the Federal Government, who knew that privatisation has led to higher prices wants to keep coal as a major source of power in Australia to keep prices down, even though most Australians support renewable energy.
And if you have visited Ne News today, you would've seen an article about plans by the French Government of President Emmanuel Macron and Prime Minister Edouard Philippe of their plans for the state-owned National Railway Company (SNCF) (https://socialistproject.ca/2018/03/france-unions-confront-macron-attacks-on-rail-services/), which involves privatisation. Note that the goal of the European Union (of which France is a member of) is the privatisation of rail, all in the name of competition (http://www.caef.org.uk/d121rail.html).
Privatisation doesn't bring the alleged benefits that governments claim. In fact, it is the exact opposite, in which privatisation costs more than public ownership. CAEF stated that "Fifteen years of rail privatisation in Britain have seen subsidies quadruple, while profits of the unloved monopolists running public transport soared alongside rail fares."
However, there is a grassroots movement to bring public transport (as well as other assets) back into public hands, as mentioned in a 2017 editorial by Ne News (http://nenews2016.blogspot.com.au/2017/02/editorial-privatisation-root-of-fascism.html), in which people power brought back several assets into public ownership.
We need to bring the power back to the people, but don't expect governments to do it as they are in the hands of the corporations.
30 March 2018
At the current time, governments around the world are privatising state assets, either claiming that owning the services is a "conflict of interest" or that the private sector can do it better for lower costs. In Australia, the "conflict of interest" argument was used to justify the privatisation of Telstra and Medibank Private among others. The "private sector can do it better for lower costs" argument was used for public transport. The argument used for privatisation is "lower costs" for "consumers". When it comes to public transport, privatisation will lead to "lower fares" for "customers". Note that governments, and increasingly the mainstream media, are increasingly using the terms "consumers" and "customers" to describe citizens.
However, privatisation has not lead to cheaper fares for passengers. In fact, fares has gone up faster than inflation, but successive governments (both Labor and Liberal) has claimed that privatisation has been good, and has continued this myth that privatisation of public transport has been good for "customers", and that every couple of years, new contracts are signed with these private operators.
Towards the end of last year, the Victorian Government of Premier Daniel Andrews renewed the contracts with MTR Corporation (who operates the trains under the name Metro Trains Melbourne) and Keolis Downer Rail (who operates under the name Yarra Trams), despite poor service from Metro; and in 2013, the government of Dennis Naphine signed a deal with French transport giant Transdev to operate 30 percent of buses in Melbourne, including buses previously operated by National Bus Company and Melbourne Bus Line, as well as the SmartBus orbitals previously operated by Ventura Bus Lines.
Privatisation in public transport has not been limited to Victoria. In 2017, the New South Wales Government sold off the government-run bus routes in Newcastle to Keolis Downer Rail under the name "Newcastle Transport", which now operates the former government-run routes in Newcastle as well as ferry services, and when it opens, will operate the light-rail in Newcastle. It should be noted that like in Victoria, this privatisation was done without the approval of the people affected (in fact, the government of New South Wales had no mandate to privatise public transport in Newcastle, just like the Victorian Government didn't have a mandate to privatise public transport in Victoria). In some other cities in Australia, it has currently just been the buses that has been sold off, but not the other infrastructure such as rail, but there is a possibility that these will eventually be sold off.
Of course, privatisation has also occurred in electricity and gas, in which the Kennett Government (which privatised the State Electricity Company and the Gas and Fuel Company) said that this will lead to lower prices for "customers". However, there has been price increases, and less investment in infrastructure as a result of privatisation. But the Federal Government, who knew that privatisation has led to higher prices wants to keep coal as a major source of power in Australia to keep prices down, even though most Australians support renewable energy.
And if you have visited Ne News today, you would've seen an article about plans by the French Government of President Emmanuel Macron and Prime Minister Edouard Philippe of their plans for the state-owned National Railway Company (SNCF) (https://socialistproject.ca/2018/03/france-unions-confront-macron-attacks-on-rail-services/), which involves privatisation. Note that the goal of the European Union (of which France is a member of) is the privatisation of rail, all in the name of competition (http://www.caef.org.uk/d121rail.html).
Privatisation doesn't bring the alleged benefits that governments claim. In fact, it is the exact opposite, in which privatisation costs more than public ownership. CAEF stated that "Fifteen years of rail privatisation in Britain have seen subsidies quadruple, while profits of the unloved monopolists running public transport soared alongside rail fares."
However, there is a grassroots movement to bring public transport (as well as other assets) back into public hands, as mentioned in a 2017 editorial by Ne News (http://nenews2016.blogspot.com.au/2017/02/editorial-privatisation-root-of-fascism.html), in which people power brought back several assets into public ownership.
We need to bring the power back to the people, but don't expect governments to do it as they are in the hands of the corporations.
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