PRIVATEERS are poised to grab profitable slices of publicly owned Network Rail, transport union RMT warned yesterday.

The union said the Tory government “has fired the starting gun on the creeping reprivatisation of Network Rail” as it was confirmed that six parts of the infrastructure agency’s job.

Four big accountancy firms are vying to pounce on Network Rail’s finance, infrastructure and accounting services.

Banks including NM Rothschild hope to win a privatisation contract to devise the most profitable way to reprivatise Network Rail, which owns and maintains Britain’s railways and many stations, piece by piece.

Network Rail took over the job of maintaining the rail network in 2002 after privateer Railtrack proved incapable of fulfilling its responsibilities.

During Railtrack’s tenure, four people were killed in 2000 in a crash at Hatfield in a derailment caused by poor maintenance.

Another seven were killed in a derailment at Potters Bar in May 2002 that was caused by further shoddy repair work.

RMT general secretary Mick Cash said: “RMT is under no illusions. There has been detailed work underway behind the scenes looking at ways and means of farming Network Rail back out to the private sector by stealth in a piecemeal fashion.

“However, the government is also well aware that the public remembers only too well the lethal days of Railtrack and the privatisation disaster which led our railways to the scandals of Hatfield, Potters Bar and other incidents which forced the creation of Network Rail.”

He said RMT’s battle for public ownership of the railways will continue.