Local RMT members and supporters joined a lively demonstration through London on Saturday 30 April, demanding that rail privatisation be reversed.
Marching from Whitehall Place to King’s Cross, demonstrators took their message to thousands of shoppers and tourists. For the previous two weeks, a group of 25 union members had marched through cities from Glasgow to London on a mobile demonstration.
RMT’s “Rail Against Privatisation” campaign aimed to put the issue on the political agenda during the General Election campaign. Although around three-quarters of the population want the railways brought back into public ownership, none of the main political parties does.
A rally at the Camden Centre on Saturday afternoon greeted the demonstrators. Speakers included Tony Benn, Labour MP John McDonnell, and union General Secretaries Billy Hayes (CWU), Mark Serwotka (PCS) and Bob Crow (RMT).
