You don't need a horse and gun to rob travellers nowadays. All you need is the contractual right to run a rail service in Britain.
There is the possibility that I might be travelling to Leicester in the near future for work reasons. It's £73 for a return ticket. And there is no way of buying two singles and making it cheaper (not that these options are usually at remotely convenient times). Luckily for me, I can actually afford this. But there are plenty of people who cannot and there were plenty of times in my life when I could not (ie. all of my life until a few years ago). What about people who cannot afford a car, what if they need to travel somewhere for a job interview? Does that mean they just cannot apply for that job unless they hitchhike or steal a car?
What is even more scandalous is that it costs £321 for a return ticket to London. Although if I bought two singles I could reduce the cost to a mere £200. How can this possibly be justified? This is particularly reprehensible as London is obviously the most common destination in Britain and people really need to travel there for work reasons. I know if I was to seek a full-time job (unlikely) then 80% of jobs in my field are based in London (not that I would move there as it would be economic suicide). For some other professions probably more than 80% of jobs are based in London and there is no doubt that there is a vast agglomeration of working opportunities in the capital.
It's utterly insane that London completely dominates this country, but no-one can afford to live there and they sure as hell don't make travelling there easy. How much longer can this go on?
I've been writing for a healthcare publication recently, and I don't think people realise that the NHS has completely had it. There is no way it can be retained in its current form, even if the demographic outlook was good, which it isn't. It would take vast investment, which is neither forthcoming from the political establishment, nor does it actually exist in monetary terms. It won't be long until British people have to purchase health insurance. That is coming soon, mark my words.
I feel I'm getting off-topic here! But I don't think people realise how insane Britain is economically and how unsustainable it is. Another indicator is the housing market which is just mental, particularly in London. This is all going to come home to roost in the coming years as more and more systemic collapse becomes evident. And...it will all be blamed on Brexit. When the NHS fails, it will blamed on Brexit. When the next market crash happens, it will be blamed on Brexit. When the house market crashes, it will be blamed on Brexit. Anything and everything will be blamed on Brexit.
Whereas the reality is that the problems are caused by a combination of a ridiculous monetary system to begin with, unmanageable debt saturation, an unaccountable market and profit-driven ethos on steroids, complete and utter kow-towing to market forces by the political system, and general apathy and ignorance among the population.
That's why people have to work in London on zero hours contract and live on bread and water, that's why large parts of the NHS have already been sold off, that's why foreign investors own large swathes of British housing, and that's why it would cost me £321 for a four-hour rail journey!
