Are wheels coming off rail nationalisation?

New Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander, appointed last week in the wake of Louise Haigh's resignation, has told people to expect train fares to still rise once the railways are renationalised.

This is somewhat different to the message Wes Streeting, now the Health Secretary, gave out during the election campaign, when he said a publicly owned rail service would mean lower fares.

Cynics could be forgiven for wondering how much impact the eye-watering pay rises approved by Miss Alexander's predecessor will have had on this apparent about-turn. 

On the positive side, the new Transport Secretary says nationalisation will improve reliability, cut delays, and reduce waste and inefficiency. She had better be true to her word. 

Miss Alexander is right in saying that for many people the present rail services are not good enough. But many will remember similar complaints when the railways were under public ownership.

Given the track record of both the privately and state-owned rail operators, you can hardly blame folk for wondering whether the public-private ownership debate is merely an ideological obsession of the political classes.

For now, the Government may get the benefit of the doubt. But patience will probably be wearing thin if, after four years, people are paying higher fares for no improvement in service.