Skip to main content






Rail Partners congratulates Laura Shoaf on appointment as chair of Shadow GBR

03 October 2024

Rail Partners chief executive, Andy Bagnall, said: 

‘Congratulations to Laura Shoaf on her appointment as Chair of Shadow Great British Railways. Rail Partners and its members want to work with Laura to ensure rail reform delivers the improvements for passengers and freight customers that we all want to see.

‘To change the railway for the better, we must correctly understand the causes of its current challenges. Train companies have been calling for the establishment of Great British Railways for many years to give greater public control but rushing to ban the use of contracted operators, before working out the details of wider reform, is a political decision that offers few practical benefits for passengers.’

About Rail Partners

Rail Partners exists to make the railway better by harnessing the expertise and creativity of private sector operators for the benefit of those who use the railway, passengers and freight customers, and those who pay for it, including taxpayers.

As well as offering advocacy and policy solutions for its private sector passenger owning group and freight company members, Rail Partners provides technical services to both private and public sector train operating companies through its Operator Services division.

More news

Rail Partners’ response to the Autumn Budget 2024
30 October 2024
Rail Partners has raised around £65,000 to support the Ukrainian Railway’s need for protective kits for employees working near the frontline, with train drivers in high-risk regions beginning to receive their protection.
Donations from British rail companies answer calls from Ukrainian Railways to protect its train drivers working in high-risk regions
24 October 2024
Rail Partners Freight Summit attendees at One Great George Street
Operators convene summit ahead of budget to unlock rail freight growth
17 October 2024
passenger numbers
Rail Partners responds to ORR’s latest passenger rail usage statistics
03 October 2024
Rail Partners congratulates Laura Shoaf on appointment as chair of Shadow GBR
03 October 2024
Rail Partners responds to ORR rail freight usage and performance
Rail Partners responds to latest freight rail usage and performance data
19 September 2024