I HAVE read several letters from various sources in Yorkshire all claiming a little-known European directive obliging the Conservative government to privatise British Railways.

This is completely untrue. The directive merely asked for a separation of operations from the infrastructure provider in the name of transparency (mainly financial transparency).

The directive also laid down regulations setting up a rail regulator to ensure fair access to a railway network.

The Tory government did not have to privatise. Sweden, Belgium, France, Denmark, Luxembourg, Italy, Spain and Portugal all have state-owned railway companies and a separate state- owned infrastructure provider.

The Netherlands put forward a proposal to privatise its railway operator (NS) but has had second thoughts. Its infrastructure provider is a state- owned company.

Only Britain privatised both sectors - to the amazement of the rest of Europe. This was a British decision, taken solely by the British government of the day and it was not forced on us by the EU.

Ironically, there is nothing to stop Britain taking its railways back into public ownership providing they are two separate entities to conform to the directive.

If the Conservative Party is to ever recover its credibility it must first accept the responsibility for the mistakes it has made in the past.

David Bowe MEP,

Yorkshire and The Humber Region, Blenheim Terrace,

Leeds.

Updated: 10:45 Monday, July 01, 2002