CITY AND SUBURBAN
Railtrack's quick return for Sid a share to have but not to hold
CHRISTOPHER FILDES
Well, now, look who's back — it's Sid! That dauntless punter on privatisations is being offered quick and cheap returns by Thomas the Tank Engine, or whatever car- toon character has been dreamed up to market Railtrack. Unpromising as the prospect may be of buying a job lot of tun- nels and viaducts, Sid will be told that this is just like the old days — remember? Just fill in those forms, pin the cheques on in the right corner, make sure that the cat and her kittens apply too, then sell on the first day of dealing and what have you got? A holiday in the Canaries, as some witless minister proclaims a triumph of popular capitalism. Jolly popular it was, too, in its way. It made Sid feel good. Every effort is now being made to make him feel good once again — this, after all, is the year when he will have money in his pockets, or so the Chancellor keeps telling him. I am surprised that no way has been found to offer discount rates on Railtrack's platform tickets, but short of that, these shares will have been priced to sell to Sid. He should, as always, hold his fire until he sees the whites of the vendors' eyes. Then he must decide whether, if he buys the shares, he should break the habit of a lifetime and hang on to them. Until now it has paid to hold shares in the privatised utilities whose man- agements, as soon as they get bonuses and options, suddenly fmd out that they can run the show with fewer people. I dare say that will go for Railtrack, too, and for its cus- tomers who will run trains on its tracks, but even so, their income will depend on public grants and public subsidies. What the state and its regulators can give, they can take away again, especially if a new government thinks the new owners are doing rather too nicely. So Sid may well think that Railtrack is a share to have but not to hold.
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