Many thanks to Cllr Connor Brady for submitting this piece. Cllr Brady has argued the case for nationalising energy providers and railways as a remedy to the cost of living crisis. Read what he had to say below:

The cost-of-living crisis is out of control whilst those same companies that are raising prices make money hand over fist. A key way to combat this is Nationalisation.

 Our UK energy bills are disturbingly high, with us being told to brace for annual energy bills of £3,850, three times higher than what they were at the start of 2022 as the Ofgem price cap is forecasted to rise again in January going from £1,271 to £3,850.

The chief executive of E.ON has suggested that this will lead to 40% of their customer base going into fuel poverty. Incredibly whilst this happens and the government stands idly by, BP profits have tripled to £7bn, handing out $3.5bn in dividends to shareholders.

British Gas owner Centrica have also seen operating profit increase fivefold to £1.3bn. Whilst we suffer 10% inflation, a huge energy price hike and these companies make more money than ever before, it is clear that following the French example would make a huge difference.

In France, the government imposed a 4% cap on price increases forcing supplier EDF to take a £7bn hit, with the government now spending £8.5bn to fully nationalise EDF saying "we must have full control over our electricity production and performance".

Here when energy supplier Bulb went insolvent, the government ran it via a special administrator and it highlights how easy it would be to take over suppliers. A nationalised Bulb, run by the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy, would be able to focus on supporting their customers and then be able to reduce prices or make a profit that goes back to the public purse, rather than now how once the business is sustainable it is handed back to a private company to make big profits for wealthy shareholders.

Enforcing a serious cap on prices which ensures regular people are not seeing prices triple and then bringing suppliers which collapse into public ownership would be a big step forward.

 Our Railways are another area where Nationalisation would answer a number of the serious questions raised around how they are run currently. UK rail prices are up to 7 times higher than those across Europe whilst privatisation has led to worsening services, higher prices, and providers collapsing.

Most recently Southeastern Railway was taken over by the government as it had not declared more than £25m in taxpayer funding that should have been returned. It is another monopolised industry where consumers have no choice at all and are at the mercy of the company's price rises.

When you compare our prices and services to Germany where they have introduced a 9-euro rail pass covering travel on all modes of urban and regional transport, and how Spain is making travel across their state-owned rail network free from September until the end of the year, it is a night and day.

The Spanish change is an example of how having nationalised rail gives the government the ability to make changes to reduce prices significantly as well as promoting using the railway to get across the country and be more environmentally friendly.

Those changes are happening on our doorstep whilst we will be forced to see prices go up by up to another 12% next year. On the railways we have seen how nationalisation creates infinitely better results as when Eastern Railway collapsed and was temporarily nationalised, within 5 years it had generated £1bn for the public purse.

Across both industries we see bosses being paid hundreds of thousands of pounds and billions going to shareholders, all paid by ourselves. We should not be subsidising poor services, extortionate prices, and millionaire yachts, instead that money should be staying in the public purse to fund other areas of government which see total neglect such as the NHS, fire services and policing.

 There is a reality here that whilst we are expected to take on 3% pay "rises" and deal with enormous inflation, those same companies which are putting up prices are taking us for fools by using it as an excuse to double and triple profits whilst working class people have to decide between eating and heating their home.

The cost-of-living crisis requires serious intervention to stop destitution and Nationalisation should play a key role in that.