THE NEWS that Northern Rail is to be taken back into public ownership has been welcomed by Pudsey, Horsforth and Aireborough MP Stuart Andrew.

Mr Andrew said: “I have long argued that the rail service offered to those of us in the North of England is simply not adequate, and I am grateful to the Government for listening to my constituents and taking the Northern franchise into public ownership. While I appreciate it will not be an overnight cure due to the scale of the Northern network, I am pleased that we are making progress and I would be grateful to my constituents for a small amount more patience while the Government work to fix this.

“I am especially pleased that the Government have acknowledged the issues we are facing and are delivering on our promises to the North of England with new and improved trains, addressing overcrowding, extending 30 station platforms and ensuring we have cleaner, more spacious stations and a uniform service across the North that we can rely on.”

The news was also welcomed by Otley’s MP Alex Sobel who said the company had “failed Leeds residents”.

Mr Sobel, who represents Leeds North West, said: “I am sick of receiving letters and emails from people who are finding persistent late trains, unreliable services and poor conditions.”

He added: “Northern had failed Leeds residents and I am pleased that the Government, who have resisted this common-sense action for so long, have finally taken the franchise back into public control. I will now put forward the case for a better, affordable and modern train service run in the national interest across all of our lines.”

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps made the announcement at the end of January, saying that he wanted passengers to see ‘real and tangible improvements’ as soon as possible.

The Government-controlled Operator of Last Resort (OLR) will take over the Northern franchise from Arriva on March 1. The OLR already runs services on the East Coast Main Line under the LNER brand, following the failure of the Virgin Trains East Coast franchise.

Mr Shapps said: “For too long, millions of rail passengers in the North of England have not had that. They have had to start and end their working day facing cancellations and delays. This is a new beginning but it is only a beginning. Northern’s network is huge and complex, some of the things which are wrong are not going to be quick or easy to put right.”