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Burnham: Renationalise Railways Line By Line

Burnham: Renationalise Railways Line By Line

A pledge to renationalise the railways "line by line" will be a central part of Andy Burnham's Labour leadership manifesto.

The shadow health secretary, who is battling to regain the momentum from the surprise frontrunner Jeremy Corbyn, is to set out plans to take the railways back into state ownership.

The pitch is being seen as an attempt to seize back some of the ground that the left-wing Islington MP has gained in recent weeks.

:: What Happens If Jeremy Corbyn Wins?

Unveiling his manifesto on Thursday, Mr Burnham will also set out plans for a new National Rail government body to make sure passengers are always offered the cheapest possible train tickets.

Mr Burnham told the Daily Mirror: "We need a new approach to our railways, one that puts passengers before profit. That's why I will work to bring the railways back under public control and public ownership," his manifesto will say.

"Under my leadership, Labour will ensure there is proper and accountable public control of the railways, with passengers' interests put first - an end to the fragmentation and privatisation."

:: Who Is Jeremy Corbyn?

:: Who Is Andy Burnham?

In the early days of the contest, Mr Burnham had been favourite to succeed Ed Miliband but recent weeks have seen a Corbyn surge.

Polls have put the veteran MP as much as 20 points ahead suggesting rivals Mr Burnham, Yvette Cooper and Liz Kendall are flagging.

However, there have been claims of a left-wing conspiracy to infiltrate the leadership selection process and calls for the contest to be called off.

Mr Burnham has claimed a victory for the anti-austerity candidate Mr Corbyn would trigger and 1980s-style split in the Labour party.

However, none of the other candidates appears to have made a significant dent in Mr Corbyn's apparently increasing popularity.

It comes as a study by Labour's former policy chief John Cruddas found that anti-austerity policies were a "vote loser" and that the Conservatives did not win the election "despite austerity, they won because of it".

Mr Cruddas said: "On the basis of the data, the public appear to think anti-austerity is a vote loser - we cannot ignore that," he said.

"We can seek to change the views of the public, but it's best not to ignore them."

He said that Mr Corbyn's anti-austerity message would not appeal to the wider public.