Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton MP, Jim McMahon, has said the "historic" new law to bring railways under public ownership will help the people of Oldham.

On Thursday (November 28), the Passenger Railways Services (Public Ownership) Act 2024 became law.

The new law will mean that instead of being provided by means of franchises, which they have been for the past 30 years, passenger railway services across England will be provided by public sector companies.

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Now, Mr McMahon has said the country has entered a new era, with the change representing the biggest overhaul of British railways in a generation.

He says the new law will ensure local public transport in Oldham and Greater Manchester is more affordable, more accountable and can help foster more well-paid and secure jobs in Oldham.

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Mr McMahon said: "This is a historic moment. With the enactment of this new law, this Labour government can now start the process of bringing train services back into public hands, ending the failure of deregulation which has seen services cut, investment dry up, and quality decline not just for services in Oldham, but services which constituents of mine rely on in Greater Manchester, in the North West and across England more widely.

"Local people for too long have had to bear the brunt of deregulation failure, whether from both Northern Trains and TransPennine Express having their franchise terminated in recent years by the previous government due to continued disruption and poor services, or to services on the West Coast Mainline becoming ever more unreliable for our city-region. However, we have reached an inflexion point and chosen a new path.

"With the Bee Network continuing to be rolled out across Greater Manchester, its integration deepening, and commuter rail services being set to join the network in a few years; communities across Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton can be confident that their local transport services from now on will be run in their interest as passengers and taxpayers, creating a more comprehensive network which they can trust."