Today, 17 October 2021, ownership of the train company Southeastern transferred from the private company Govia to the Department for Transport, in the guise of a publicly owned company called SE Trains Limited. This followed a Government announcement on 27 September that explained that Govia had failed to declare “over £25 million of historic taxpayer funding which should have been returned” and was consequently being stripped of the franchise for breaching financial obligations to act in good faith, despite having handed back the money.
No doubt the accountancy issues raised will be of interest to professionals, but for passengers this change will mean very little. The trains will continue to run, and the timetable, staff and fares will all remain the same. Even the trading name ‘Southeastern’ and the current branding will survive intact.
Before news of the franchise termination hit, it had been announced that the David Statham was stepping down as Managing Director of Southeastern and would be replaced by a Govia colleague, Steve White. We had wondered whether a Department for Transport appointee would be installed instead, but in fact Steve White took over as expected on 11 October, shortly before the transfer to public ownership. Interestingly, part of his role was described as to take “Southeastern through the transition to SE Trains”. It is strange to think of a Govia employee being appointed to oversee the transfer of ownership away from Govia.
The change of ownership at Southeastern foreshadows the greater role of the public sector in the plans to establish Great British Railways as a guiding mind for the railways. In fact, one day Southeastern may again be taken into the private sector, but only as a concession with tight public sector control. The days of true rail privatisation are long behind us.
We will continue to work with Southeastern, acting as a critical friend to point out where improvements can be made. For us, as well as for Southeastern, it will be very much business as usual.