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But Mr Brown said: “We are operating a service that the Government wants us to operate to allow key workers to get to places … and keep industry going. And we are being paid a management fee for running that contract.
“If you were talking to [waste management company] Veolia … they would be running a contract. And they would be expecting to make a margin on that contract – we are in no different of a position.”
The results come with Britain’s rail industry at a crossroads. The pandemic has tightened state control, with operators receiving a fee from the taxpayer and the Government collecting fares – a reversal of the privatised model introduced by John Major in the 1990s.
A root-and-branch review of the railways, conducted by Royal Mail boss Keith Williams and originally commissioned in 2018 by Chris Grayling, the then transport secretary, has been repeatedly delayed.
A Government White Paper is expected to be published, responding to Mr Williams’ recommendations that will lead to sweeping changes to the train network.
