Bob Crow, RMT General Secretary, said today:

"These inflation-busting increases show that the great rail fares privatisation swindle is still rocking along, with the train operating companies laughing all the way to the bank.

Independent analysis by Government departments has proven that the fare increases are trousered by the shareholders of the private companies while passengers pay through the nose to travel in rammed and creaking carriages.

The corporate welfare scroungers from the train companies have bled hundreds of millions out of our railways and they should be told that the game's up."