Northern Rail passengers protest over poor service in Manchester in 2019 Photograph: Christopher Thomond/The Guardian
Analysis reveals ‘privatisation premium’ of £250 per household per year paid to owners of water, rail, bus, energy and mail services since 2010
The public has paid almost £200bn to the shareholders who own key British industries since they were privatised, research reveals.
The transfer of tens of billions of pounds to the owners of the privatised water, rail, bus, energy and mail services comes as families face soaring bills, polluted rivers and seas, and expensive and unreliable trains and buses.
As a result, citizens have been paying a “privatisation premium” of £250 per household per year since 2010 alone, the analysis found.
Recent focus has been on the privatised water industry, which has run up long-term debts of £73bn and paid out dividends of £88.4bn in the past 34 years at the same time as overseeing record sewage spills, according to the latest figures.
But for the first time the thinktank Common Wealth has drawn together the haemorrhaging of billions of pounds to shareholders across four key sectors, most of which were privatised from the 1980s and 1990s by Margaret Thatcher’s Conservative government – energy, transport, water and mail.
US and British flags hang along the Mall in London ahead of the state visit of Donald Trump, 16 September 2025. Photograph: Vuk Valcic/ZUMA Press Wire/Shutterstock
These are dark times, but those who seek to divide us will not win. The capital’s soul and spirit are as inclusive and optimistic as ever
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President Donald Trump and his coterie have perhaps done the most to fan the flames of divisive, far-right politics around the world in recent years. When he came to the UK on his first state visit, I highlighted how the president had deliberately used xenophobia, racism and “otherness” as an electoral tactic, introducing a travel ban on a number of Muslim-majority countries and praising white nationalists in Charlottesville, Virginia.
Six years later, the tactics we see from today’s White House seem no different. Scapegoating minorities, illegally deporting US citizens, deploying the military to the streets of diverse cities. These actions aren’t just inconsistent with western values – they’re straight out of the autocrat’s playbook.
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The president and his supporters often talk about the importance of free speech, painting a picture of Britain as a dystopian society where repression means our rights are under threat. Nothing could be further from the truth. This week, I’m sure many Londoners will speak up to tell President Trump and his followers that we cannot be divided by those who seek to sow fear. That we are determined for our city to stand strong as a bastion against hate, and shine bright as a beacon of hope. That we see strength in our diversity, not weakness. And that we hold our progressive principles high with pride, rather than hiding them in shame.
Donald Fuhrump says that Amerikkka doesn’t bother with crimes or charges anymore, not being 100% Amerikkkan and opposing his real estate intentions is enough.Elon Musk urges you to be a Fascist like him, says that you can ignore facts and reality then.Donald Trump urges you to be a Climate Science denier like him. He says that he makes millions and millions for destroying the planet, Burn, Baby, Burn and Flood, Baby, Flood.
Instead of addressing child poverty, homelessness, poor working conditions or any of the real issues impacting this country, Labour has chosen to deflect the blame and pour billions into arms, says Jeremy Corbyn. Britain is tired of having no political choice – and we’re here to fix that
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Over the past year, the government has continued a programme of austerity and privatisation. It has refused to lift the two-child benefit cap, the single biggest driver of child poverty. It has tried to take away the winter fuel allowance. It has increased the bus fare cap. And it has tried to take away £5bn from disabled people, curating a two-tiered benefit system that deprives thousands of people of a dignified life.
There is one area where the government has been very generous, though: arms spending. Government military spending is now at £31.7bn, which is a 6 per cent increase in real terms from last year. Imagine how much better ordinary people’s lives would be if we spent that money on schools, hospitals and green energy instead.
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People have had enough of a political regime that serves the interests of billionaires and corporations. They have had enough of a government that inflicts suffering at home and enables genocide abroad. They have had enough of broken promises from political parties that fail to deliver real change.
Keir Starmer says that the Labour Party under his leadership all feel a small part of Scunthorpe.Keir Starmer explains the moral case for cutting disability benefits. He says work will set you free.Palestine Action joke that appeared in the UK satirical magazine ‘Private Eye’.
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The Deir Yasin vessel from the Maghreb Sumud Convoy set sail from Sidi Bu Said port during night as the boats of the Global Sumud Flotilla continue to head towards Gaza to deliver humanitarian aid, in Tunis, Tunisia on September 16, 2025. [Mohammed Mdalla – Anadolu Agency]
Ships of a Gaza-bound aid flotilla will gather near Malta before sailing together across the Mediterranean toward the Israel-blockaded territory, organizers said on Tuesday, Anadolu reports.
“More than 50 ships of the Global Sumud Flotilla already set sail from several ports in Tunisia, Italy, Greece and Libya,” the International Committee to Break the Israeli Siege of Gaza said in a statement.
“The ships are scheduled to gather at a rendezvous point near Malta before sailing together toward the shores of Gaza,” it added, without specifying a date.
The committee said the flotilla ships carry relief supplies, medicines, baby formula, and hundreds of activists and supporters from more than 40 countries.
“Many Arab activists and supporters are on board, as well as dozens of public figures, parliamentarians, doctors, and community leaders from North African countries.”
The aid flotilla also includes dozens of participants from several other countries, including Türkiye and Malaysia.
“This flotilla, given its unprecedented size and diversity, is expected to represent a turning point in efforts to break the Israeli blockade on Gaza,” the committee said.
The current convoy is the largest of its kind, aiming to challenge the blockade and deliver humanitarian aid to Palestinians in Gaza, where famine conditions have taken hold under Israel’s months-long closure of all crossings.
The Israeli army has killed almost 65,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children, in Gaza since October 2023. The relentless bombardment has rendered the enclave uninhabitable, and led to starvation and spread of diseases.
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Genocide denier and Current UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is quoted that he supports Zionism without qualification. He also confirms that UK air force support has been essential in Israel’s mass-murdering genocide. Includes URLs https://www.declassifieduk.org/keir-starmers-100-spy-flights-over-gaza-in-support-of-israel/ and https://youtu.be/O74hZCKKdpAKeir Starmer objects to criticism of the IDF. He asks how could anyone object to them starving people to death, forced marches like the Nazis did, bombing Gaza’s hospitals and universities, mass-murdering journalists, healthworkers and starving people queuing for food, killing and raping prisoners and murdering children. He calls for people to stop obstructing his genocide for Israel.Donald Fuhrump says that Amerikkka doesn’t bother with crimes or charges anymore, not being 100% Amerikkkan and opposing his real estate intentions is enough.
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Relatives of Palestinians, who lost their lives following the Israeli attacks on people waiting humanitarian aid in Tina region of Rafah, mourn as the bodies are taken from Nasser Hospital for funeral process in Khan Yunis, Gaza on September 16, 2025. [Abed Rahim Khatib – Anadolu Agency]
At least 64,964 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s genocidal war on the Gaza Strip since October 2023, as the death toll from hunger climbed to 428, including 146 children, the Health Ministry said Tuesday, Anadolu reports.
In its daily update, the ministry said 59 bodies were brought to hospitals in the last 24 hours, while 386 people were injured, bringing the total number of injuries to 165,312.
“Many victims are still trapped under the rubble and on the roads as rescuers are unable to reach them,” the statement added.
The ministry said 112 people were injured by Israeli army fire while seeking humanitarian aid in the past 24 hours. According to the ministry, at least 2,497 aid seekers were killed and over 18,294 others wounded by the Israeli army since May 27.
It confirmed three new fatalities over the past 24 hours, one of them a child, caused by severe malnutrition, bringing the famine-linked death toll since October 2023 to 428, including 146 children.
The ministry said at least 150 Palestinians, among them 31 children, have died of hunger since August, when the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) declared famine in Gaza City. The IPC warned that the crisis would spread to Deir al-Balah and Khan Younis in central and southern Gaza by the end of September.
Israel has sealed Gaza’s crossings since March 2, preventing food and aid trucks from entering despite hundreds waiting at the border. The move has exacerbated the humanitarian catastrophe in the enclave, leaving residents without access to basic supplies.
The Israeli army resumed its attacks on the Gaza Strip on March 18 and has since killed 12,413 people and injured 53,271 others, shattering a ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement that took hold in January.
Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza. Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.
This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Genocide denier and Current UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is quoted that he supports Zionism without qualification. He also confirms that UK air force support has been essential in Israel’s mass-murdering genocide. Includes URLs https://www.declassifieduk.org/keir-starmers-100-spy-flights-over-gaza-in-support-of-israel/ and https://youtu.be/O74hZCKKdpAKeir Starmer objects to criticism of the IDF. He asks how could anyone object to them starving people to death, forced marches like the Nazis did, bombing Gaza’s hospitals and universities, mass-murdering journalists, healthworkers and starving people queuing for food, killing and raping prisoners and murdering children. He calls for people to stop obstructing his genocide for Israel.Donald Fuhrump says that Amerikkka doesn’t bother with crimes or charges anymore, not being 100% Amerikkkan and opposing his real estate intentions is enough.
