What's 'hundreds of millions of pounds' between friends?

Good to see partnership is alive and well on the LNW Route!

Apparently Beardie Rail is threatening to take NR to court over poor performance.

According to Virgin Rail's CEO, Tony Collins, in the FT...

“We have been trying to work with Network Rail to sort things out but this has been going on for 15 years and we have been left with no alternative,” he said, adding that it was damaging the Virgin brand.

Errr...

No matter.

Meanwhile in the Birmingham Mail Collins is quoted as saying
 
“We have spent hundreds of millions of pounds on a fleet of reliable trains and we pay NR nearly £200 million a year to maintain the West Coast line for us. We feel that we are not getting value for money in this respect and our customers have been let down and deserve more consistency.”

Virgin has spent 'hundreds of millions of pounds' on its train fleet, eh?

Who knew?

Pity the poor old Rolling Stock Leasing Companies!

In Beardie World they now assume the mantle of Trotsky - suitable only for being air-brushed out of history.

UPDATE: This from Steve Strong...

Virgin obviously shares the same view of Roscos as the DfT.

Perhaps this explains the recent rapprochement?

A threat to the NRM - time for an industry response?

"A nation that forgets its past has no future."

Wise words from Winston Churchill!

So what are we to make of threats to the National Railway Museum?

According to the Beeb... 

One of three museums in the north of England will close if further cuts to budgets are made, their owner has said.

The Science Museum Group (SMG) said it was in a "weak" financial position.

As well as the Science Museum in London, SMG runs the Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester, the National Railway Museum in York and the National Media Museum in Bradford.

Director Ian Blatchford said as well as the closure, "big cuts" may also be made to the museum in London.

He said the prospect of a further 10% cut in funding in the next round of government spending proposals meant "almost certainly" one museum would shut.

Meanwhile York's The Press is mounting a campaign to Save the NRM.

Who is leading the industry response to this threat and how can Eye readers support?