The utopia of nationalised rail transport is unachievable because in effect it's bankrolled by private industry through taxation.

I'm not a nationalist. I see nationalisation as a cheap form of communism! What that means is the elite really do become the elite and everyone else is relegated to the position of (supposedly) equal worker status.

"The State" has a history of bungle this, bungle that, bungle nearly everything so that in the end it all comes from the Costa Fortune.

Although I have been a trade union member (I still have my union cards), that's another thing I'm wary of because of their "job protection" stance.

Businesses should be profitable, if they're not, that's it, the end. Nationalised things get bogged down by idiotic decisions, illconsidered changes made with little redress for those promoting such things coupled with an air of "job-for-life" complacency.

As for HS2? I think that's a very expensive waste of money. The country is "too small". As soon as the train gets up to full speed it'll be time to slow down and stop again. Madness, sheer madness!