Privatisation has failed.

An exclusive poll for LFF shows huge public support for nationalisation of key industries and utilities, with the public having little confidence in the private sector, showing just how badly privatisation has failed.

Our poll – conducted by Savanta – shows that a majority of the public support public ownership of key industries and utilities like energy, water, railways, buses and the postal service – including among Conservative voters.

Buses: 67% want public ownership

67% of voters want to see buses in public ownership, with just 23% wanting private sector involvement. Support for public ownership of buses is highest among 18-24 year olds at 77%, with 64% of those aged 65 and over also supporting public ownership.

When it comes to party affiliation, a majority of Conservative Party voters want to see buses in public ownership (61%) as do Labour voters (72%) and Lib Dem voters (66%).

Water: 73% want public ownership

When it comes to water companies, 73% of voters want public ownership of water companies, compared to 18% who want them to be run by the private sector. Once again, a majority of Tory voters also want to see public ownership (70%) as do Labour voters (81%) and Lib Dem voters (77%). 88% of Green Party voters also want to see water companies taken into public ownership.

Railways: 70% support for public ownership

The failure of rail privatisation is there for all to see, so it comes as no surprise that 70% of the public support railways being put into public ownership. That includes 76% of those aged 65 and over as well as 72% of 18 to 24 year olds.

Energy: 65% want public ownership

Amid a cost of living crisis, fuelled by soaring energy costs, as energy companies continue to make record profits, it’s little surprise that 65% of the public want public ownership of energy companies, with just 24% supporting private ownership.

A majority of Tory voters (63%) want public ownership of energy companies as well as 78% of Labour Party voters, 69% of Lib Dems and 80% of Green Party voters.

Postal service: 70% want public ownership

An overwhelming majority of voters (70%) want to see the postal service nationalised.

66% of Tory voters think the postal service should be run by the public sector, as do 78% of Labour voters, 74% of Lib Dem voters and 84% of Green voters.

NHS: 81% want public sector involvement only

Amid repeated attempts by the Tory party to push for NHS privatisation through the back door, 81% of voters believe that the National Health Service should be solely run by the public sector.

Schools: 78% support public ownership

Despite our socially segregated education system, in which just 7% of the population attend private schools yet disproportionately make up the leading professions in the UK, an overwhelming majority of the public (78%) believe that schools should be run by the public sector.

When it comes to party affiliation, the proportion of Tory and Labour Party voters who support the public sector in running schools is at 81% each, while 71% of Lib Dem voters feel the same as do 79% of Green Party voters.

Prisons: 70% of the public believe they should be run by the public sector

Around 70% of the public believe that prisons should be run by the public sector. That includes 56% of 18-24 year olds as well as 67% of 45-54 year olds and 84% of those aged 65 and over.

Commenting on LFF’s poll findings, Cat Hobbs, Director of We Own It, which campaigns for public services to be run for people, not profit, said: “It’s abundantly clear: the public think that private profit has no place in our vital public services.

“We’re fed up of water companies dishing out the dividends while dumping sewage into our rivers and seas. We’re fed up of missing the morning meeting because of unreliable buses. We’re fed up of energy suppliers profiting off of the cost of living crisis while our bills skyrocket.

“Now it’s time for politicians to do their job and represent our views by bringing public services back into public hands where they belong. By kicking profit out of the equation, we’d have more money to invest in the green, affordable services we deserve. With greater accountability, we’d have a say, and we’d also benefit from the lower cost of borrowing in the public sector.

“We all deserve public services fit for the 21st century, working for people and planet, not private profit.”

Basit Mahmood is editor of Left Foot Forward

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