Starmer challenged on taking railways back into public ownership

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer was questioned on whether he still intended to take railways back into public ownership.

Speaking at the Spine Building in Liverpool, Starmer said: “I think what some of our mayors and metro mayors are doing with public transport is the right way forward – absolutely focused on keeping the price down and making sure there’s control over where things go.”

The Labour leader insisted he took a “pragmatic” approach when challenged about his views on public ownership of rail, energy and water companies, insisting that his focus was on economic growth rather than ideology.

However, Starmer added: “I absolutely understand the frustrations of everybody trying to use the rail service”.