Labour threatens to strip Avanti West Coast’s contract over ‘woeful service’

Shadow transport secretary Louise Haigh claimed it provided “woeful service” on the West Coast Main Line, which runs between London Euston and Glasgow, via Wigan North Western.

Office of Rail and Road figures show it had the third worst reliability of all operators in the year to March, with the equivalent of one in 15 trains (6.9 per cent) cancelled.

The Conservative Government awarded Avanti West Coast a long-term contract starting in October 2023.

It is for up to nine years but can be terminated with three months’ notice from October 2026.

Asked about Labour’s plan to bring services into public ownership, Ms Haigh told Sky News: “Our commitment is to bring in those contracts as they expire or when they are breached.

“I anticipate I will be seeking advice early on whether Avanti has been in breach of its contract given the woeful service that it’s been providing to passengers down the West Coast Main Line.”

She added: “No ifs, no buts, October 2026 will be the last date Avanti will have notice of that contract, but I will ask for early advice about whether they have already breached their contract and whether it can be brought in any earlier.”

An Avanti West Coast spokesperson said: “Recently we have introduced our new Evero fleet on the West Coast Main Line which has boosted capacity on the network.

“This combined with our refurbishment of our Pendolino trains, the introduction of standard premium and our Superfare ticket has significantly improved customer experience on our services.”