Passenger Railway Services Bill (Public Ownership) Bill: Second Reading
351Ayes
84Noes
Carried · majority 267 · Government won209 did not vote
644 Members · Aye 351 · No 84 · DNV 209 · grey dots in centre are abstentions
Analysis
Commons
Commons
Parliament voted on 29 July 2024 to give the Passenger Railway Services (Public Ownership) Bill its Second Reading, allowing the legislation to proceed to further scrutiny. The vote passed by 351 ayes to 84 noes. Second Reading is the first full Commons debate on a bill's general principles, and a majority in favour means the House approved the bill moving forward. The bill would end the system of private franchises running England's passenger rail services and transfer those services into public ownership. In practical terms, this means train operating companies currently holding contracts to run services would not have those contracts renewed on expiry, with services passing to a publicly owned operator instead. The legislation is one of Labour's most prominent domestic policy commitments, and its passage through Second Reading marks a significant early step in delivering it. The vote divided almost entirely along party lines. All 346 Labour and Labour and Co-operative MPs who voted backed the bill, with no Labour members voting against. All 82 Conservatives who voted opposed it, joined by three Reform UK MPs and one Independent. Three Greens and one SDLP member voted in favour alongside the government. There were no notable cross-party rebels. The Conservatives have previously been the architects and defenders of rail franchising as a policy, making their unanimous opposition consistent with their long-standing position. Subsequent committee-stage votes in September 2024 showed opposition amendments being heavily defeated, suggesting the bill proceeded through that stage with comfortable government majorities.
Voting Aye meant
Support returning passenger rail services to public ownership by ending private franchises
Voting No meant
Oppose rail renationalisation, favouring continued private sector operation of passenger services
Each row is one party. The stacked bar gives the within-party split of Aye / No / Absent; the columns on the right give the raw counts. The whip column shows the published party position — “Free vote” means the whip was formally removed for this division.
Party
Whip
Aye / No / Abs
Aye
No
Abs
Labour Party
Whipped Aye
309
0
52
Conservative and Unionist Party
Whipped No
0
82
34
Liberal Democrats
—
0
0
71
Labour and Co-operative Party
Whipped Aye
37
0
5
Independent
—
3
1
10
Scottish National Party
—
0
0
9
Reform UK
Whipped No
0
3
4
Sinn Féin
—
0
0
7
Democratic Unionist Party
—
0
0
5
Green Party of England and Wales
Whipped Aye
3
0
1
Plaid Cymru
—
0
0
4
Social Democratic and Labour Party
—
1
0
1
Your Party
—
1
0
1
Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
—
0
0
1
Restore Britain
—
0
0
1
Speaker
—
0
0
1
Traditional Unionist Voice
—
0
0
1
Ulster Unionist Party
—
0
0
1
Source · Hansard · UK Parliament Votes API · whip status from announced positions; “free vote” indicates the whip was formally removed
Public ownership is necessary to fix a broken privatised system; privatisation has failed passengers with poor performance, high fares, and profit extraction; the Bill allows contracts to expire and return to public control, saving taxpayer money on private sector fees.Labour · Voted aye · Read full speech (2,637 words) →
Rail reform is needed but this Bill is ideological, not evidence-based; privatisation transformed British Rail and doubled passenger numbers; public ownership under current management offers no guarantee of cheaper fares or better reliability; the Bill lacks detail on how it will benefit passengers.Conservative · Voted no · Read full speech (2,622 words) →
Privatisation has failed and extracted £700m annually in shareholder dividends while fares rose 20% in real terms; public ownership will serve the public interest rather than private profit; the manifesto commitment reflects strong public support (76% in recent polling).Labour · Voted aye · Read full speech (1,383 words) →
Rail needs reform and public services should be affordable, but nationalisation alone is not the answer; concerned about funding competition with NHS and schools; prefers pragmatic focus on worst-performing operators first; Liberal Democrats will scrutinise based on passenger benefit.Liberal Democrat · Voted no_vote_recorded · Read full speech (1,125 words) →
Rail system needs reform but government should address worst performers first; unclear how Bill benefits passengers; concerns about operational details (driver training, seven-day service, ticket offices); waiting to be convinced this puts passengers first rather than ideology.Conservative · Voted no · Read full speech (1,261 words) →
Mike AmesburySupportive
Avanti West Coast's poor performance demands action and public ownership; welcomed government's willingness to terminate contracts for underperformance.Labour · Voted aye · Read full speech (111 words) →
Public ownership has already shown improvements (TransPennine Express became most improved operator); South Western will see similar benefits; all remaining contracts will be brought into public ownership within three years.Labour · Voted aye · Read full speech (206 words) →
Supports the Bill's modernisation; highlights that disabled access and rural station closures remain overlooked priorities that must be addressed.Democratic Unionist Party · Voted no_vote_recorded · Read full speech (165 words) →
Sources
Division dataUK Parliament Votes API
DebateHansard · Commons
Stance analysisAI analysis · Claude 4.x
LicenceOpen Parliament Licence v3.0