Privatization and its Implications for Social Welfare

This study focuses on the topic of privatization and its implications for social welfare, specifically analyzing the privatization of the British Rail. It explores the benefits of privatization for the common people and the changes in operations processes. The study is conducted through five chapters, including introduction, literature review, research methodology, findings and discussion, and conclusion and recommendations.

Running head: PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE: A STUDY OF
THE PRIVATIZATION OF THE BRITISH RAIL
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author’s Note:

1PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
ABSTRACT
This study focuses on the topic “PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL
WELFARE: A STUDY OF THE PRIVATIZATION OF THE BRITISH RAIL”. The researcher
as per the academic conventions of conducting research had divided the study into five chapters,
namely, introduction, literature review, research methodology, findings and discussion and
conclusion and recommendations.
The first chapter introduces the research questions, research objectives, aim and other important
details on the basis of which the entire study had been conducted. For instance, the researcher
had tried to analyze the manner in which the privatization of The British Railway had benefited
the common people of the nation of UK and its implications for public social welfare in the
concerned nation. In the second chapter a review of past literature related to privatization and its
implications for welfare had been conducted.
The third chapter highlights the methodological framework that had been used for the conduct of
the study. For instance, the researcher took the help of positivism research philosophy,
descriptive research design, deductive research approach, conducted interview with 5 employees
related to The British Railway for the collection of the primary data and the primary qualitative
data analysis was used for the analysis of the primary data.
The fourth chapter of the study clearly reveals the fact that social welfare was one of the most
important factors which influenced the privatization of The British Railway. More importantly,
the findings of the study also highlight the fact that the privatization had positively benefited the
common and also The British Railway post-privatization had substantially changed its operations

2PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
processes to improve the quality of the transport services offered by it. The final chapter
summarizes the major findings of the study.

3PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I would like to take this opportunity to thank my Professor Mr. ………….., for offering me the
opportunity to complete my dissertation on the topic “PRIVATIZATION AND ITS
IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE: A STUDY OF THE PRIVATIZATION OF THE
BRITISH RAIL”. I would also like to thank my Supervisor for the constant support which he
offered me during the completion of this study.
Lastly, I would also like to thank my friends and family members whose constant support and
help enabled me to complete this dissertation.
Thank You.
-----------------------------------------------------
(Name of the Researcher)

4PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
Table of Contents
Chapter 1: INTRODUCTION.........................................................................................................7
1.1 Introduction.......................................................................................................................7
1.2 Background of the Study...................................................................................................7
1.3 Overview of British Railways...........................................................................................8
1.4 Rationale of the Study.......................................................................................................8
1.5 Problem Statement............................................................................................................9
1.6 Research Aim.......................................................................................................................10
1.7 Research Objectives.............................................................................................................10
1.8 Research Questions..............................................................................................................10
1.9 Overview of Literature Review...........................................................................................10
1.10 Overview of Research Methodology.................................................................................11
1.11 Significance of the Study...................................................................................................11
1.12 Structure of the Study........................................................................................................12
1.13 Summary............................................................................................................................13
Chapter 2: LITERATURE REVIEW............................................................................................14
2.1 Introduction..........................................................................................................................14
2.2 Overview of the concept of Privatization............................................................................14
2.3 Factors which affect the process of Privatization................................................................15
2.3.1 Political Factors............................................................................................................16

5PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
2.3.2 Economic Factors.........................................................................................................16
2.3.3 Institutional Factors......................................................................................................17
2.3.4 Social Welfare Factor...................................................................................................18
2.4 Privatization and Social Welfare.........................................................................................18
2.4.1 Social Welfare implications for organizations as a result of Privatization...................19
2.4.2 Social Welfare implications for common people as a result of Privatization...............20
2.5 Literature Gap......................................................................................................................20
2.6 Summary..............................................................................................................................21
Chapter 3: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY.................................................................................22
3.1 Introduction..........................................................................................................................22
3.2 Research Philosophy............................................................................................................22
3.2.1 Justification of the Selected Research Philosophy.......................................................23
3.3 Research Approach..............................................................................................................23
3.3.1 Justification of the Selected Research Approach..........................................................23
3.4 Research Design..................................................................................................................24
3.4.1 Justification of the Selected Research Design..............................................................24
3.5 Data Collection Method.......................................................................................................24
3.5.1 Justification of the Selected Data Collection Method..................................................25
3.6 Data Analysis Method.........................................................................................................25
3.6.1 Justification of the Selected Data Analysis Method.....................................................25

6PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
3.7 Ethical Consideration...........................................................................................................26
3.8 Limitations of the Study......................................................................................................26
3.9 Summary..............................................................................................................................26
Chapter 4: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION.................................................................................27
4.1 Introduction..........................................................................................................................27
4.2 Discussion of the Interview Transcript................................................................................27
4.3 Summary..............................................................................................................................33
Chapter 5: CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS........................................................35
5.1 Summary of the aims and key findings...............................................................................35
5.2 Linking with the Research Objectives.................................................................................36
5.3 Recommendations................................................................................................................37
5.4 Consideration of the implications of the findings for theory and practice..........................39
5.5 Limitations of the study and directions for future research.................................................39
References......................................................................................................................................40
Appendix 1: Literature Review Continuation................................................................................46
Appendix 2: Interview Questions..................................................................................................51
Appendix 3: Interview Transcript..................................................................................................52

7PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
Chapter 1: INTRODUCTION
1.1 Introduction
In this chapter, the researcher highlights the aim of the research, the research objectives,
research questions, problem statement, rational of the research and other aspects of the research.
Furthermore, the researcher also offers an outline of the entire study and also the significance of
the study as well.
1.2 Background of the Study
The researcher had selected the topic to analyze the implications of social welfare as a result
of the privatization of ‘the British rail’. In this relation, it needs to be said that the privatization of
the British Railway is likely to offer various kinds of benefits to the passengers who take the help
of the rails for the purpose of transportation within the nation of UK (Lovell and Nightingale
2016). For example, prior to privatization it was seen that the passengers were offered
“subsidized journey fares” as part of the railway system of the nation of UK. However, this
system significantly reduced the revenue earned by the railways and this adversely affected the
quality of the transportation facilities offered by the same to the passengers (Shaw 2019). The
improvement of the quality of the transportation services offered by the British Railways, which
forms an integral part of the lives of the people in UK, through the process of privatization, is
important from the perspective of social welfare (Jupe and Funnell 2017). Thus, the researcher
had selected this particular topic to analyze the implications of the same for the passengers and
also the British Railways.

8PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
1.3 Overview of British Railways
According to Ramanadham (2019), the railway system of the nation of UK is not only one of
the oldest ones of the world but also one of the largest ones of the world as well. In this relation,
it needs to be said that the entire rail transport of the nation of UK is being regulated by the two
regulatory bodies of the nation, namely, British Transport Commission and British Railways
Board (Preston 2018). More importantly, it was through the joint initiative of these two
regulatory bodies that the British Railways was formed in the year 1965 (initially trading as
British Rail) through the conglomeration of the four ‘Big Four’ railway companies of UK
(Cowie 2015). Furthermore, the focus of the British Railways was on the number of passengers
that it got and for this the employees were being paid in commissions (McCartney and Stittle
2017). Thus, the British Railways resorted to the usage of the process of “subsidized journey
fares” through the usage of which the passengers were required to pay a much lower travel fare
than the actual amount. The long-term usage of this system started to take a toll on not only the
profitability of British Railways but also the quality of the transport services offered by it to the
passengers (Jupe and Funnell 2015). The national government of UK, thus, undertook the
privatization of British Railways between the years 1994-1997 under John Major through the
Railways Act 1993 (Cowie 2018).
1.4 Rationale of the Study
The issue that the researcher had selected for analysis is the social welfare or the private
welfare which the privatization of the British Railways is likely to cause and also its wider
implications for the British Railways itself and the passengers who take the help of the
transportation services offered by the same. This is an important issue since in the earlier times
the ineffective strategies or the measures followed by British Railways substantially reduced the

9PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
quality of the transportation services offered by it (Haywood 2016). This adversely impacted the
lives of the common people of UK since rail is an important mode of transportation in UK. More
importantly, British Railway need to substantially modify the operations process and others
which are being used by it for delivering transportation services to the passengers (Bowman
2015). However, the major problem arises because of the fact that it is very difficult to
effectively measure the impact of this welfare initiative undertaken by the national government
of UK. Thus, the researcher in order to analyze the social or the welfare aspect of the
privatization of British Railways would undertake an analysis of the implications of the same for
British Railways and the passengers.
1.5 Problem Statement
Privatization of the British Rail created an impact on the social welfare of the people of UK.
The privatization of the British Railways was mainly undertaken from the context of social
welfare however the problem arises because this is likely to have both positive and negative
connotations for the people of UK. For example, this measure is likely to make the rail services
in the nation of UK more passenger-friendly, systematic and better in quality (Le Grand and
Robinson 2018). However, the passengers would no longer be entitled to the “subsidized journey
fares” and also would have to pay a higher fare for availing the rail services (Preston 2018).
More importantly, welfare activities are not a quantifiable entity or tangible commodity and thus
it is very difficult for the national government of UK to measure the extent to which the measure
had been able to positively affect the lives of the common people of the nation of UK.

10PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
1.6 Research Aim
The aim of this study is to identify how the privatization of the British Railways has
affected the social welfare of the British passengers and the essential implications of this
privatization for the passengers and British Railways.
1.7 Research Objectives
The objectives on which the study will focus on are listed below-
1. To examine the effect on the social welfare of the passengers as a result of railway
privatization
2. To understand the implications of the privatization of railways on the operations of the
British Railway
3. To evaluate the effectiveness of the privatization of railways in the context of public
social welfare
1.8 Research Questions
The questions on which the study will focus on are listed below-
1. What is the effect on the social welfare of the passengers as a result of railway
privatization?
2. What are the implications of the privatization of railways on the operations of the British
Railway?
3. Has the privatization of railways been effective in the context of public social welfare?
1.9 Overview of Literature Review
In the Literature Review Chapter, the researcher had undertaken a review of the past
literature related to the concepts of welfare state and privatization. For example, the concept of

11PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
welfare state had been explained and also its major characteristic features like equal
opportunities, equitable distribution of wealth, socialist national government, control of the
major business corporations by the national government and others have been explained.
Furthermore, an explanation of the concept of privatization had also been given along with the
major factors like political factors, economic factors, institutional factors, social welfare factors
and others which affect the process of privatization had also been explained. Lastly, the
implications of the process of privatization for the common people and also the different
business corporations have also been explained.
1.10 Overview of Research Methodology
In the Research Methodology Chapter, the researcher had outlined the detailed
methodological framework that had been followed for the conduct of the study. In this relation, it
needs to be said that the researcher had selected the positivism research philosophy, descriptive
research design, deductive research approach and others for the completion of the study. More
importantly, the researcher had interviewed five employees related to the British Railways for
the collection of the required information or data needed for the completion of the study and this
primary data would be analyzed through the usage of the primary qualitative data analysis
method.
1.11 Significance of the Study
This study will be an important one since very few studies have been conducted which
have tried to analyze the welfare connotations of the privatization of the British Railways or its
implications for the passengers and the British Railways. Thus, this study can be seen as a
framework which the future researchers have the opportunity to use to conduct further research
works on similar or related topics. More importantly, this research will also elucidate the manner

12PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
the national government of the different nations of the world can undertake similar measures or
initiatives in their nation, for the welfare of the common people.
1.12 Structure of the Study
The researcher will follow the below given structure for the completion of the study
under discussion here-
Figure 1: Structure of the Study
Source: (Created by the Author)
‘Chapter 2’ will focus on the analysis of the selected topic, that is, ‘Privatization of the
British Railway” and social welfare through the usage of the past literature so as to highlight the
theoretical concepts which will help in the analysis of the responses collected from interviews.
‘Chapter 3’ will elucidate the research methodology and its diverse constructs like research
design, research philosophy, research approach, data collection method (collection of primary
C h a p te r 1 : In tro d u c tio n
C h a p te r 2 : L ite ra tu re R e v ie w
C h a p te r 3 : R e se a rc h M e th o d o lo g y
C h a p te r 4 : F in d in g s a n d D ic u s s io n
C h a p te r 5 : C o n c lu s io n a n d R e c o m m e n d a tio n s

13PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
data through the usage of the tool of interview) and data analysis method (primary qualitative
analysis) which would be used by the research. ‘Chapter 4’ undertakes an analytical analysis of
the data collected from the interview (5 employees related to British Railways) in the light of the
theoretical concepts highlighted in the second chapter. Finally, the fifth chapter sums up the
results derived from the entire study and also highlights the future scope of the study as well.
1.13 Summary
The researcher in this chapter had outlined the different important aspects of the entire
study like aim of the study, research objectives, problem statement, research questions and others
which would be instrumental in the completion of the study. This chapter would be followed by
the second chapter wherein the researcher would undertake a theoretical analysis of the selected
topic.

14PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
Chapter 2: LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1 Introduction
The research had undertaken a critical review or analysis of the past literature related to
the topics of privatization and social welfare in this chapter of the study. The researcher had
highlighted important theoretical concepts, ideas, frameworks, models and others which are
likely to facilitate the discussion of the findings obtained from the interviews (with five
employees related to British Railways).
2.2 Overview of the concept of Privatization
As opined by Spolander, Engelbrecht and Sansfaçon (2016), the process of privatization
in simple terms refers to the transfer of the business corporations or the other entities directly
controlled by the national government to the public sector for the improvement of their
performance or for that matter the enhancement of the benefits or advantages offered by them to
the common people. Adding to this, Le Grand and Robinson (2018) have noted that the process
of privatization can also refer to the process through which a business corporation which had
been highly regulated by the national government of the nation of its operation becomes
deregulated or for that matter the restrictions placed by the national government on the same gets
lifted. However, at the same time it needs to be said that the process of privatization does not
mean that the business corporations undergoing the concerned process do not fall under the
compass of the national government or do not have to follow the business regulations, polices,
stipulations and other aspects of the national government of their operation (Dowling 2017). It
just means that the national government would not wield a strong sway over its business
activities or operations and it is free to conduct its business activities in the manner in which it

15PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
best thinks fit while complying with the business regulations or the policies of its operations
(Raco 2016).
More importantly, recent researches in their studies have found that the government
regulated business corporations often fail to attain the desired level or the right kind of growth
because of the large amount of workload that the national government of the nations are required
to handle (Donnison 2018). This in turn diverts the attention of the national government from the
management of the business activities or the operations of the different business corporations
operational in their nation and thereby adversely affects the growth or the development prospects
of the business corporations (Bel and Fageda 2017). Furthermore, it had been seen that the
economic growth attained by any nation greatly depends on the profitability or for that matter the
financial returns earned by the business corporations operational in the concerned nation (Dean
2015). Thus, in the scenario of the ineffective management of the business corporations the
economic growth of the different nations had been adversely affected and this in turn had slowed
down the economic growth of the various countries of the world. The end result of this is that the
national governments of the different nations of the world are increasingly resorting to the usage
of the process of privatization for the purpose of accelerating the growth of the business
corporations operational in their nation and thereby enhance the economic growth of the entire
nation itself.
2.3 Factors which affect the process of Privatization
The decision of the national government of any nation to undertake the process of
privatization, is influenced a plethora of factors and some of the most important ones in this
regard are listed below-

16PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
2.3.1 Political Factors
As stated by Lin and Matsumura (2018), the political environment or the condition which
exists within the framework of any nation greatly influences the decision of the national
government of the concerned nation whether to undertake the process of privatization or not. In
this relation, it needs to be said the national governments of the nations which follow the concept
of socialism usually try to maintain a stringent hold over the business corporations operational in
the nation (Pinker 2017). This is usually done so as to offer the maximum amount of benefits to
the common people of the nation by way of safeguarding and promoting their social as well as
economic welfare. On the other hand, the national governments of the nations which follow the
concept of capitalism try to offer free reign to the business corporations so as to help them to
maximize their production and thereby the profitabilit6y earned by them (Beresford 2016).
However, presently, it had been seen that even the nations which follow the concept of welfare
state are taking the help of the construct of privatization so as to improve the efficiency of the
business corporations operational in their nation and thereby the profit earned by them (Meagher
and Szebehely 2019). This is important since the profit earned by the business corporations
greatly influences the economic condition of a nation and thus the national governments of the
different welfare states are taking various initiatives for the privatization of the units or the
entities of the nation which are not being able to manage in an effective manner or for that matter
derive the maximum amount of profitability from the same (Gardam, Giles and Hayhurst 2017).
2.3.2 Economic Factors
Harlow and Lawler (2018) are of the viewpoint that the economic condition of a
particular nation greatly influences the decision of the national government of the concerned
nation, for undertaking the process of privatization. For example, it is usually seen that the

17PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
national governments go ahead with the process of privatization when they think that the process
of privatization is likely to help the business corporations to improve the efficiency of their
organization and thereby earn a higher amount of profitability (Woodward 2019). This is
important from the perspective of the national economy of the concerned nation since the
revenue generated by the business corporations operational within a particular nation also
determines the economic growth of the concerned nation as well (Mercille and Murphy 2016). In
the light of these aspects, it can be said that economy is another important factor which
influences the decision of the national governments to undertake privatization.
2.3.3 Institutional Factors
According to Andreotti and Mingione (2016), the business corporations and the factors
which affect the business operations of these corporations directly influence the decision of the
national government to undertake the process of privatization. In this relation, it needs to be said
that the process of privatization is usually undertaken by the national government when it finds
that it is not being able to effectively manage the diverse aspects of the business corporations
which are being regulated by it (Dovemark et al. 2018). Furthermore, the governmental officials
because of their lack of experience in the field of management of business often lack the ability
to handle the different business processes of the corporations which in reduces the amount of
productivity of the corporations, their profitability and others (Lavinas 2017). However, this is
actually detrimental from the perspective of the national government since because of the above
mentioned scenario they would neither be able to promote or safeguard the economic welfare of
the people of the nation nor their social welfare. Thus, it can be said that the institutional factors
are wield a substantial amount of influence on the national governments for undertaking the
process of privatization.

18PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
2.3.4 Social Welfare Factor
Spolander, Engelbrecht and Sansfaçon (2016) have noted that the factor of social welfare
is an integral one which influences the decision of the national governments for undertaking the
process of privatization. In this relation, it can be said that the national government of a
particular nation is more likely to undertake the process of privatization if it feels that the
concerned process would enhance the effectiveness of the business corporations regulated by it
and also like to offer benefits to the common people as well (Wilhelmsson and Hurri 2019).
Furthermore, the primary objective of the different governments should be to undertake the kind
of actions which are not only going to offer the people the maximum amount of benefit but also
promote as well as safeguard their social and economic welfare as well (Le Grand and Robinson
2018). In the light of these aspects, it can be said that the national governments of the different
nations of the world while undertaking the decision as to whether they want to use the process of
privatization or not, they should take into account the aspect of social welfare or the benefit that
it is going to offer to the common people as well.
2.4 Privatization and Social Welfare
As stated by Lorenz (2016), the entities of privatization and social welfare are linked with
each other and it is seen that the aspect of social welfare is one of the most important aspects
which influence the decision of the national governments for the purpose of undertaking the
process of privatization. In this relation, it needs to be said that the effective usage of the process
of privatization can offer different kinds of benefits to the business corporations like enhancing
the effectiveness of the corporations, increase in the volume as well as the quality of the products
or services manufactured by the business corporations, increase in the profitability of the
corporations and others (Bárcena-Ruiz and Garzón 2018). These are likely to positively affect

19PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
the common people as well in the longer run. For example, if the national government of a
particular nation decides to privatize the rail of the concerned nation then while making the
railway services of the concerned more systematic and effective, this is also likely to improve the
quality of the services which would be offered to the passengers. Thus, it can be said that this
improvement in the quality of the services offered by the rail would be the welfare or the benefit
that the national government would cause to the common people by undertaking the process of
privatization.
2.4.1 Social Welfare implications for organizations as a result of Privatization
Le Grand and Robinson (2018) are of the viewpoint that the process of privatization has
profound implications for the business corporations and in the majority of the cases it is seen that
they are required to make substantial changes within the business model or the practices which
are being followed by them. For example, by becoming privatized the corporations have the
opportunity to enhance their production, change their marketing strategies and the other aspects
of their business which are likely to enhance the scope of their business while complying with
the major precepts of the business regulations of the national government (Meagher and
Szebehely 2019). However, the effective attainment of this end along with different kinds of
policy changes would require the business corporations to substantially change not only the
means of production that they had been following under the national government but also the
manner in which the operations of the entire corporation are being managed (Dovemark et al.
2018). More importantly, recent researchers have clearly highlighted the fact that the majority of
the business corporations which had become privatized had been able to substantially enhance
the prospects or the scope of their business through the usage of adequate business policies or
measures (Harlow and Lawler 2018). Furthermore, despite the changes that the business

20PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
corporations are required to make in order to align their business processes with the requirements
of privatization the social welfare benefits can in no way be relegated to the background. For
instance, the benefits that the business corporations are able to derive through privatization are
equally beneficial from the perspective of the common people and in the light of these aspects it
can be said that the process of privatization had greatly contributed towards the welfare of the
common people.
2.4.2 Social Welfare implications for common people as a result of Privatization
As discussed by Andreotti and Mingione (2016), the process of privatization directly
affects the common people of the nation in which the concerned process is being undertaken. In
this relation, it needs to be said that one of the most important factors which motivates the
national government of the different nations of the world to undertake the process of
privatization is social welfare. The resultant effect of this is that in the majority of the cases the
process of privatization is being undertaken only when the people are going to derive a
substantial amount of benefit from the same (Gardam, Giles and Hayhurst 2017). Furthermore,
this benefit can be in terms of the improvement of the nature or the quality of the products or
services which would be made available to them, the number of choices related to products or
services that they would be having and others.
2.5 Literature Gap
The researcher during the completion of this literature review found that a substantial
amount of critical and scholarly work had already been done on the topics of social welfare state
and the process of privatization. Furthermore, the scholars have clearly indicated the major
factors which influence these two variables and also the major characteristics of both of them.
However, during the process of reviewing the literature, the researcher found that not many

21PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
scholarly works have been conducted taking into account the social welfare implications of the
process of privatization. It is precisely here that the prominence of this particular research lies
since it is unique in its own regarding because of the focus of the study on the social welfare
implications of the process of privatization. Thus, the future researchers would have the
opportunity to use this research as a framework for conducting further research work on related
topics.
2.6 Summary
To sum up, the researcher had elucidated important theoretical concepts related to the
topic of privatization, social welfare state, the relationship between the privatization and social
welfare and others in this chapter. This is likely to help the researcher to understand effectively
the findings which would be derived from the interview. This chapter would be followed by the
chapter “Research Methodology”.

22PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
Chapter 3: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
3.1 Introduction
According to Kumar (2019), research methodology is a detailed organized or systematic
approach that is being used by the researchers for the conduct of their study. Taylor, Bogdan and
DeVault (2015) are of the viewpoint that the researchers need to select the different entities of
the research methodology like research approach, research philosophy, research design, data
collection method and others on the basis of the topic or the nature of the study that they are
conducting. The aim of the researcher in this chapter is to elucidate the different entities of the
research methodology which would be used for the completion of the study and also offer
justification of the usage of the same.
3.2 Research Philosophy
As opined by Silverman (2016), research philosophy is the amelioration of the beliefs,
values and others, which guide the entire process of research that is being conducted by the
researchers. Alvesson and Sköldberg (2017) are of the viewpoint that the researchers have the
option to use either of three research philosophies depending on the nature of the study that they
are conducting, namely, realism research philosophy, interpretivism research philosophy and
positivism research philosophy. The researchers are required to take the help of different
observations, opinions, facts, statistics and others for supporting the different assumptions that
they have made for the use of the positivism research philosophy (Flick 2015). Furthermore,
formulation of adequate hypotheses is important for the use of this philosophy since the
researchers need to test the validity of the same through secondary or primary data. The
interpretivism research philosophy is dependent on the human behavior and thus the researchers

23PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
are required to segregate the human behavior and social factor for the adequate use of this
philosophy (Fletcher 2017). More importantly, the realism research philosophy is generally
considered to be a combination of these research philosophies (Walliman 2017).
3.2.1 Justification of the Selected Research Philosophy
Positivism research philosophy had been used for the completion of this study. This will
enable the researcher to analyze the different assumptions or the research questions made in the
study through the help of relevant statistics, facts, figures, observations and others.
3.3 Research Approach
As discussed by Smith (2015), the researchers commonly take the help of inductive
research approach and the deductive research approach for the effective conduct of their
research. In this relation, Quinlan et al. (2019) have noted that through the usage of the deductive
research approach the researchers have the opportunity to use different theoretical frameworks,
models and others highlighted in the secondary literature related to the topic on which they are
conducting the study. In this relation, it needs to be said that the research using this approach are
required to formulate hypotheses and analyze the validity of the same through the usage of the
theoretical models, frameworks and others. In contrast to this, the researchers taking the help of
the inductive research approach to use various analytical tools for the analysis of the information
that they have gathered (Kumar 2019).
3.3.1 Justification of the Selected Research Approach
Deductive research approach had been selected by the researcher for this study. This will
enable the research to analyze or for that matter test the accuracy or the validity of the

24PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
assumptions or the hypotheses formulated at the beginning of the study by analyzing them
through the different theoretical models, frameworks and others.
3.4 Research Design
McCusker and Gunaydin (2015) are of the viewpoint that the different researchers
commonly use the explanatory research design, exploratory research design and descriptive
research design for the conduct of their study. In this relation, Bell, Bryman and Harley (2018)
have stated that the researchers need to highlight the background information or the problem
stated related to the research objectives or the research questions that they have formulated for
the use of the exploratory research design. Furthermore, the researchers in order to use the
explanatory research design need to analyze the root causes or the factors which had directly
contributed towards the problem that they are analyzing in their study (Silverman 2016). As
discussed by Flick (2015), the researchers in order to take the help of the descriptive research
design need to link the findings that they have derived from the analysis of the secondary or the
primary data used in the study with the research objectives or the research questions elucidated
in the first chapter of the study.
3.4.1 Justification of the Selected Research Design
Descriptive research design had been selected by the researcher for the conduct of this
study. This is likely to help the researcher to attain the desired coherence within the study
because of the opportunity to link the findings obtained from the analysis of the secondary or the
primary data used in the study with the research questions or research objectives which were
highlighted in the first chapter of the study.

25PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
3.5 Data Collection Method
According to Alvesson and Sköldberg (2017), the secondary data collection method and
the primary data collection method are the two most important methods of collecting or
gathering data which is used by the researchers. The adequate use of the secondary data
collection method requires the researchers to collect data from secondary sources of information
like newspaper articles, credible webpages, peer-reviewed articles and others (Taylor, Bogdan
and DeVault 2015). In contrast to this, the usage of the primary data collection method requires
the researchers to collect or gather primary or firsthand data or information from the respondents
through the usage of the tools of survey, interview, questionnaires and others (McCusker and
Gunaydin 2015).
3.5.1 Justification of the Selected Data Collection Method
Primary data collection method had been selected by the researcher for the collection of
the required data or information needed for the completion of the study. This will help the
research to conduct interview with 5 employees related to British Railways for the collection of
the required information or data.
3.6 Data Analysis Method
As discussed by Walliman (2017), the quantitative data analysis method and the
qualitative data analysis method are the most important methods of analyzing data or information
that the researchers have collected. Furthermore, the choice of the data analysis method is greatly
influenced by the data collection method that had been selected by the researchers (Kumar
2019). For example, the researchers for the analysis of the primary data need to take the help of
the quantitative data analysis method whereas for the secondary data or information they are
required to take the help of the qualitative data analysis method (Bell, Bryman and Harley 2018).

26PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
3.6.1 Justification of the Selected Data Analysis Method
Primary qualitative data analysis method had been selected by the researcher for the
analysis of the primary data, which had been collected by the researcher through the usage of the
tool of interview. The choice of this data analysis method had been influenced by the data
collection method selected by the researcher.
3.7 Ethical Consideration
The researcher ensured the fact that the ethical paradigms of conducting academic
research were fulfilled during the conduct of the study. For example, no private or personal
questions were asked to the interviewees during the conduct of the interview. Furthermore, the
researcher in order to avoid plagiarism had offered due credit to the past scholars or the
researchers whose works have been used for the completion of the study through in-text citations
and referencing.
3.8 Limitations of the Study
The researcher because of accessibility issues was able to conduct interview with only
five employees of the British Railways. Furthermore, because of resource and time constraints
no survey was conducted for enhancing the accuracy of the study which in turn had substantially
narrowed down the scope of the entire study itself. These in short are the two major limitations
of the study under discussion here.
3.9 Summary
To sum up, the researcher in this chapter had highlighted the different entities of the
research methodology like research philosophy (positivism research philosophy), research
approach (deductive research approach), research design (descriptive research design), data

27PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
collection method (primary data collection method), data analysis method (primary qualitative
data analysis method) and others that had been used for the completion of the study. This chapter
would be followed by the chapter “Findings and Discussion”.
Chapter 4: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION
4.1 Introduction
The research had presented the transcripts of the interviews with the five employees
related to The British Railway with whom interviews were conducted for the collection of the
required primary needed for the completion of the study in this chapter. Furthermore, a
discussion of the findings obtained from the interview had been undertaken in the light of the
arguments presented in the “Chapter 2” of the study so as to enable the researcher to effectively
answer the research questions.
4.2 Discussion of the Interview Transcript
Interviewer: What according to you are the most important factors that contributed
towards the privatization of The British Railway?
Interpretation of the Employee’s Response: A common feature of the response given by all
the five employees who participated in the process of interview to this question is the fact that
they all agree social welfare is the major factor which propelled the national government of UK
to undertake the process of privatization. The below par transportation services offered by The
British Railway adversely affected the common people who availed the transportation services
offered by the same. For example, the Second Employee had clearly mentioned that “social
welfare was the most important one which contributed towards the privatization of The British
Railway”. In this relation, it needs to be said that this viewpoint of the Second Employee is being

28PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
agreed upon by the other employees of The British Railway who participated in the interview. In
addition to this, the employees who participated in the interview also noted that the economic
factor was another important factor which directly influenced the national government of UK to
undertake the privatization of The British Railway. For instance, the Fifth Employee noted that
“the UK government saw the opportunity to enhance the revenue from The British Railway by
privatizing it”. This viewpoint of the Fifth Employee is also reverberated by the First Employee
and the Third Employee who stated that the chance to enhance the revenue generated by The
British Railway through the improvement of the transportation services offered to the passengers
was an important factor which affected the privatization.
Spolander, Engelbrecht and Sansfaçon (2016) are of the viewpoint that one of the most
important factors which affect the decisions of the national governments for the purpose of
undertaking the process of privatization can be attributed to the factor of social welfare.
Wilhelmsson and Hurri (2019) have noted that the national government because of the large bulk
of work that they are required to deal with often finds it very difficult to manage the services
offered by the different corporations which are being managed by them. This in turn adversely
affects the common people who are reliant on the services offered by the concerned corporations.
In the face of this, the national governments taking into account the perspective of social welfare
or for that matter the benefits that the common people would be able to derive need to undertake
the process of privatization. In the particular context of The British Railway, it can be said that
the below-par transportation services offered by the same adversely affected the common people
and thus the decision of the national government of UK to privatize The British Railway
becomes a fully justified one from the aspect of social welfare. Harlow and Lawler (2018) are of
the viewpoint that the economic prospects of any nation greatly depends on the growth of the

29PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
different corporations operations in that nation. Thus, in situations wherein the national
governments are being unable to manage the affairs of the corporations it becomes important for
them to undertake the process of privatization. For instance, this would enable them to enhance
the revenue generated by the concerned corporations through the improvement in the quality of
the services offered by the same. This can even be ascribed to the particular scenario of the
decision of the national government of UK to privatize The British Railway wherein it was seen
that the economic factor or for that matter the desire of the national government of UK to
enhance its profitability lead to the concerned decision.
Interviewer: What according to you is the effect on the social welfare of the passengers as a
result of railway privatization?
Interpretation of the Employee’s Response: The employees who participated in the interview
concur on the idea that the privatization of The British Railway had been largely instrumental in
enhancing social welfare of the passengers. For instance, the First Employee stated that the
privatization of The British Railway “enhanced the efficiency of transportation services offered
by The British Railways and this in turn had positively affected the common people”. More
importantly, prior to the privatization the passengers had to face a substantial amount of issues
because the trains were highly irregular, the compartments of the trains were unclear and others
and these in turn adversely affected the people. However, as per the Second Employee it had
been seen that the “common people are presently enjoying regular railway services, the number
of trains have increased in an exponential manner, the wait time between two trains had also
been reduced significantly post the privatization of The British Railways”. This in turn can be
seen as a reflection of the benefits or for that matter the social welfare which had been caused by
the privatization of The British Railway to the passengers.

30PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
Bárcena-Ruiz and Garzón (2018) are of the viewpoint that in the majority of the cases it
had been seen that the process of privatization is being undertaken so as to facilitate the process
of social welfare of the common people or for that matter the people or the individuals who are
reliant on the services offered by the corporations undergoing the process of privatization. More
importantly, Lorenz (2016) had noted that the processes of social welfare and privatization are
directly related to each other and thus it becomes imperative for the national governments to take
into account this particular factor while undertaking the concerned process. As the answers given
by the five employees clearly reveal, the privatization of The British Railway had more than
positively affected the lives of the passengers who frequently avail the transportation services
offered by the same. For instance, the passengers are being able to enjoy hassle-free journeys
because of the improvement of the transportation services offered by The British Railway which
in turn had not only enhanced the profitability of the same but also the welfare that the common
people are being able to derive from the same.
Interviewer: What are the most important implications for the operations of The British
Railway on account of its privatization?
Interpretation of the Employee’s Response: The Third Employee who participated in the
interview conducted by the researcher stated that “We had been forced to completely change
both the backstage and the front-stage operations of The British Railways keeping into
perspective the transportation or the travel needs of the common people who frequently avail the
rails”. This viewpoint, as a matter of fact, is being supported by all the five employees who
participated in the interview. For instance, it had been seen the national government of UK prior
to the process of privatization merely focused on offering the rail transportation services to the
passengers at the complete disregard of the quality, timeliness and other aspects of the same.

31PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
This in turn created a substantial amount of discomfort or issues to the passengers who
frequently availed the rail transportation services offered by The British Rail. Thus, after the
privatization of The British Rail, the authorities were forced to substantially change the
operations processes which were being used for the purpose of delivering transport services to
the passengers. More importantly, the Fourth Employee clearly stated that “Our motto presently
is to offer the best quality transportation services to the people and the operations process which
we are presently using had been designed taking into motto into account”. Thus, it can be said
that presently the different backstage as well as the front-stage activities of the entire operations
processes used by The British Railways have been formulated or for that matter designed taking
into account the factors of social welfare and also the aspect of profitability as well. Furthermore,
an important point raised by all the five employees is the fact that the operations processes of
The British Railway post the process of privatization had been formulated keeping into
perspective the different national government rules, regulations, stipulations, mandates and
others related to the same.
Le Grand and Robinson (2018) are of the viewpoint that the corporations undergoing the
process of privatization are required to substantially change or for that matter modify the
operations processes that they had been using so as to achieve the objectives with which the
privatization had been undertaken. Adding to this, Meagher and Szebehely (2019) have noted
that the corporations need to ensure the fact that the operations processes which are being used
by them is in synchronicity or for that matter conjunction with the different mandates,
stipulations or regulations of the national government of their operation so as to derive the best
possible results from the privatization that had been undertaken. In the particular case of the
privatization of The British Railway as the opinions of the five employees reveal The British

32PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
Railway had been forced to substantially change or for that matter transform the operations
processes that it had been used to following prior to the privatization. For instance, it was seen
that the two major objectives with which the privatization was undertaken were the social
welfare and the enhancement of profitability. Thus, keeping these two factors into consideration
and also the different stipulations of the national government of UK related to the management
of the operations of the railway of the concerned nation, the operations processes used by The
British Railway had been designed post the privatization of the same.
Interviewer: Do you think that the privatization of The British Railways has been effective
from the context of public social welfare?
Interpretation of the Employee’s Response: The five employees who participated in the
interview concur on the idea that the privatization of The British Railway was largely influenced
by the desire of the national government of UK to bring about the social welfare of the common
people of the concerned nation. For instance, the First Employee supporting this viewpoint had
stated that “From personal experience I would say that the quality of railways which have been
available to the common people post the privatization are far better than the one which was
offered by the same when it was managed by the national government of UK”. More
importantly, presently it had been seen that the passengers have access to more number of trains ,
the compartments of the trains are more spacious in nature to accommodate more passengers, the
average wait time between two trains had also reduced significantly and others. In this relation, it
needs to be said that these changes brought about by the privatization of The British Railway
pertaining to the quality of the transportation services which are being presently offered to the
common people had not only improved the manner in which they travel but also helped in the
process of social welfare as well. This finds support from the viewpoint of the Fourth Employee

33PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
who stated that “An important determinant of the effectiveness of services presently offered by
The British Railway is the fact that we have been able to increase the number of daily passengers
that we get despite Uber and others being the preferred choice of the people”. The major reason
why the passengers presently opt for the rail transportation services offered by The British
Railway can be attributed to the hassle-free journeys which they are being able to undertake in
the present times.
As discussed by Andreotti and Mingione (2016), an integral feature of the process of
privatization is the fact that it facilitates social welfare on the score of the improvement of the
nature or for that matter the quality of services which are being made available to the common
people. Gardam, Giles and Hayhurst (2017) are of the viewpoint that in the majority of the cases
it had been seen that the process of privatization is being undertaken only when there is a chance
to facilitate social welfare or for that matter increase the number of benefits which are available
to the common people. This even becomes apparent from the case of the privatization of The
British Railway wherein it had been seen that an important factor which influenced the national
government of UK to undertake the process of privatization was to facilitate the social welfare of
the common people or more specifically the passengers who frequently availed the services
offered by The British Railway. For instance, the improvement in the quality of the
transportation services which the passengers or the common people have been able to enjoy
because of the privatization had positively benefited them and thereby fulfilled the objective of
the national government of UK to bring about the social welfare of the common people of UK.
4.3 Summary
To summarize, the researcher in this chapter presented the primary data which was
collected for the completion of this study. More importantly, a critical discussion of the findings

34PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
obtained from the primary data was also undertaken through the specific lens of the ideas or for
that matter concepts discussed in the “Chapter 2” of this study. The chapter is followed by the
last chapter of this study, namely, “Conclusion and Recommendations”.

35PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
Chapter 5: CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
5.1 Summary of the aims and key findings
The results of the study clearly reveals the fact that although the economic factor was an
important reason for the decision of the national government of UK to undertake the
privatization of The British Railway yet at the same time it needs to be said that the decision was
largely influenced by the aspect of social welfare. For example, when The British Railway was
being managed by the national government of UK it was seen that the rail transportation offered
to the passengers were highly irregular in nature and this in turn adversely affected not only the
passengers but also the other people of the concerned nation as well. This can be explained on
the basis of the fact that in the 20th century the rails or for that matter the trains were the major
source of transportation of UK and thus the ineffective services offered by the same adversely
affected the lives of the common people. However, at the same time it needs to be said that in the
face of the privatization which The British Railway underwent in the last decade of the 20th
century, a substantial amount of change within the operations process used by the same had also
undergone.
In addition to these, The British Railway in order to fulfill the objective with which the
privatization was undertaken, that is, to facilitate the social welfare of the people, had drastically
changed the operations processes which are being used by it for providing the transportation
services. Furthermore, the focus is presently on the improvement of the quality of the
transportation services which are being offered to the passengers or to the common people. In the
face of this, it had been seen that the trains have become more regular with lesser cancellations,
the size of the compartments of the trains have increased taking into account the convenience of

36PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
the passengers, the average wait time between two trains had reduced significantly and others.
Moreover, it had been seen that despite the emergence of different alternative modes of
transportation, The British Railway had been able to increase the number of passengers that it
gets presently not only because of the drastic improvement in the quality of the transportation
services which are being offered by it to the passengers but also on the score of its focus on the
aspect of social welfare as well. Thus, it can be said that the privatization of The British Railway
have been able to promote as well as achieve the social welfare of the common people or more
precisely the passengers who avail the rails in UK.
5.2 Linking with the Research Objectives
Research Objective 1: To examine the effect on the social welfare of the passengers as a
result of railway privatization
The study clearly revealed the fact that the improvement in the quality of the rail
transportation services which have been made available to the common people or more precisely
the passengers in the nation of UK have benefited the people in a significant manner. For
instance, unlike the earlier times, the people do not have to suffer because of the inefficiency or
for that matter the ineffectiveness of The British Railway since even in the present times rails are
one of the most important modes of transport in the nation of UK. More importantly, the
researcher also found that social welfare was one of the most important factors which directly
contributed towards the privatization of The British Railway. Thus, it can be said that the
privatization of The British Railway had been largely successful in bring about social welfare of
the common people of the nation under discussion here.

37PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
Research Objective 2: To understand the implications of the privatization of railways on
the operations of the British Railway
The operations processes which are being used by a particular corporation greatly depend
on the nature of the services which are being offered by it and also the goals or the objectives
that it is trying to achieve. Thus, in the context of The British Railway it is seen that the
operations processes, both the backstage and the front-stage processes have been designed in
such a manner that it would help The British Railway to offer the best quality rail transport
services to the passengers and thereby benefit them in the best possible manner. More
importantly, The British Railway had also been required to take into account the different
stipulations, regulations, mandates and others of the national government of UK within the
framework of the operations management processes followed by it.
Research Objective 3: To evaluate the effectiveness of the privatization of railways in the
context of public social welfare
The five employees of The British Railway who participated in the interview agreed to
the fact that the quality of the rail transport services offered by The British Railway has
improved drastically after it was privatized. For instance, unlike the earlier times, the trains or for
that matter the rails have become more-timely, the average wait time between two trains or rails
for departure has been reduced compared to earlier times, the trains have been made more
spacious and other. These measures have helped The British Railway to significantly increase the
number of passengers that it is getting presently and this in turn is an indication of the
effectiveness of the privatization of The British Railway in the context of public social welfare.

38PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
5.3 Recommendations
 Usage of recent technologies for the improvement of transport services: The British
Railway through the usage of different advanced technologies has not only the
opportunity to improve the kind of trains which are being used by it but improve the
quality of the services which are being offered by it. For instance, the adequate usage of
disruptive technologies like ‘internet of things’, internet, social media, electronic tickets
and others would help it to enhance the satisfaction of the passengers while making the
services offered by it more passenger friendly.
 Collaboration with the travel agencies: The privatization of The British Railway was
undertaken to help in the social welfare of the common people of UK. However,
presently it had been seen that there are thousands of people who visit the nation of UK
for various kinds of tourisms. Thus, it is likely that The British Railway through the
usage of this particular measure would be able to extent the umbrella of social welfare
and incorporate the different tourists and others who visit the concerned nation for
various purposes as well.
 Focus on the comfort of the passengers: The British Railway in order to benefit the
passengers who avail the transport services offered by it in the best possible manner need
to take into account the aspect of the comfort level of the passengers as well. For
instance, special focus needs to be placed on the senior citizens, physically challenged
people and others who unlike the normal people find it difficult to make use of the
transportation services offered by The British Railway. Thus, it is likely that through the
effective usage of this measure The British Railway would not only be able to

39PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
substantially increase the number of passengers that it gets but facilitate social welfare as
well.
5.4 Consideration of the implications of the findings for theory and practice
The findings of this study are important not only from the perspective of The British
Railway but also from the perspective of the other nations of the world which are facing quality
issues related to the management of their railway or for that matter the state-controlled bodies.
For instance, the study highlights the manner in which the different nations of the world have the
opportunity to facilitate the public social welfare of the organs of the state which form an integral
part of the lives of the common people of the concerned nation. In the nation of UK, it was seen
that the privatization of The British Railway was undertaken to improve the quality of the rail
transport available to the common people and thereby promote the welfare of the people. This
measure is something which the other nations of the world can also follow to facilitate the social
welfare of the common people of their nation.
5.5 Limitations of the study and directions for future research
The most important limitation of this study is the fact that the researcher had been able to
interview only five employees related to The British Railway for the collection of the primary
data needed for the completion of this study. Furthermore, the tool of survey was not used by the
researcher for substantiating the information gathered from the employees of The British
Railway through the usage of the tool of interview. Thus, in future, the researcher in order to
effective enhance the scope of this study would take the help of the research strategy of survey
along with the usage of the tool of interview. More importantly, the researcher will also try to get
more employees to participate in the interviews so as to make the study more credible and also
accurate.

40PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
References
Alvesson, M. and Sköldberg, K., 2017. Reflexive methodology: New vistas for qualitative
research. Sage. London.
Andreotti, A. and Mingione, E., 2016. Local welfare systems in Europe and the economic
crisis. European Urban and Regional Studies, 23(3), pp.252-266.
Bárcena-Ruiz, J.C. and Garzón, M.B., 2018. Privatisation and vertical integration under a mixed
duopoly. Economic Systems, 42(3), pp.514-522.
Bel, G. and Fageda, X., 2017. What have we learned from the last three decades of empirical
studies on factors driving local privatisation?. Local Government Studies, 43(4), pp.503-511.
Bell, E., Bryman, A. and Harley, B., 2018. Business research methods. Oxford university press.
New York.
Beresford, P., 2016. All our welfare: Towards participatory social policy. Policy press. Bristol.
Bosanquet, N., 2018. Is privatisation inevitable?. In Privatisation and the Welfare State (pp. 58-
69). Routledge. London.
Bowman, A., 2015, March. An illusion of success: The consequences of British rail privatisation.
In Accounting forum(Vol. 39, No. 1, pp. 51-63). Taylor & Francis. London.
Cowie, J., 2015. Does rail freight market liberalisation lead to market entry? A case study of the
British privatisation experience. Research in Transportation Business & Management, 14, pp.4-
13.

41PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
Cowie, J., 2018. Long term productivity gains in the privatised British passenger rail industry–A
case study of Malmquist productivity index measurements. Research in Transportation Business
& Management, 28, pp.3-11.
Dean, H., 2015. Social rights and human welfare. Routledge. New York.
Donnison, D., 2018. The progressive potential of privatisation. In Privatisation and the Welfare
State (pp. 45-57). Routledge. Bristol.
Dovemark, M., Kosunen, S., Kauko, J., Magnúsdóttir, B., Hansen, P. and Rasmussen, P., 2018.
Deregulation, privatisation and marketisation of Nordic comprehensive education: social changes
reflected in schooling. Education Inquiry, 9(1), pp.122-141.
Dowling, E., 2017. In the wake of austerity: Social impact bonds and the financialisation of the
welfare state in Britain. New Political Economy, 22(3), pp.294-310.
Drakeford, M., 2016. Social policy and privatisation. Routledge. New York.
Fletcher, A.J., 2017. Applying critical realism in qualitative research: methodology meets
method. International Journal of Social Research Methodology, 20(2), pp.181-194.
Flick, U., 2015. Introducing research methodology: A beginner's guide to doing a research
project. Sage. Boston.
Gardam, K., Giles, A.R. and Hayhurst, L.M.C., 2017. Understanding the privatisation of funding
for sport for development in the Northwest Territories: a Foucauldian analysis. International
Journal of Sport Policy and Politics, 9(3), pp.541-555.

42PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
Gerrard, J., 2017. Welfare rights, self-help and social enterprise: Unpicking neoliberalism’s
mess. Journal of Sociology, 53(1), pp.47-62.
Harlow, E. and Lawler, J., 2018. Management, social work and change. Routledge. London.
Haywood, R., 2016. Railways, urban development and town planning in Britain: 1948–2008.
Routledge. Bristol.
Jupe, R. and Funnell, W., 2015. Neoliberalism, consultants and the privatisation of public policy
formulation: The case of Britain's rail industry. Critical Perspectives on Accounting, 29, pp.65-
85.
Jupe, R. and Funnell, W., 2017. ‘A highly successful model’? The rail franchising business in
Britain. Business History, 59(6), pp.844-876.
Kumar, R., 2019. Research methodology: A step-by-step guide for beginners. Sage Publications
Limited. New Delhi.
Lavinas, L., 2017. How social developmentalism reframed social policy in Brazil. New Political
Economy, 22(6), pp.628-644.
Le Grand, J. and Robinson, R., 2018. Privatisation and the welfare state: an introduction.
In Privatisation and the Welfare State (pp. 1-14). Routledge. London.
Le Grand, J. and Robinson, R., 2018. Privatisation and the welfare state. Routledge. Los
Angeles.
Lin, M.H. and Matsumura, T., 2018. Optimal Privatisation Policy under Private Leadership in
Mixed Oligopolies. Arthaniti: Journal of Economic Theory and Practice, 17(1), pp.1-14.

43PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
Lorenz, W., 2016. Rediscovering the social question. European Journal of Social Work, 19(1),
pp.4-17.
Lovell, K. and Nightingale, P., 2016, October. Business models in rail infrastructure: explaining
innovation. In Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers-Transport; RRUKA Annual
Conference; London, UK; 5 November 2015 (Vol. 169, No. 5, pp. 262-271). Thomas Telford
(ICE Publishing).
McCartney, S. and Stittle, J., 2017. ‘A Very Costly Industry’: The cost of Britain’s privatised
railway. Critical Perspectives on Accounting, 49, pp.1-17.
McCusker, K. and Gunaydin, S., 2015. Research using qualitative, quantitative or mixed
methods and choice based on the research. Perfusion, 30(7), pp.537-542.
Meagher, G. and Szebehely, M., 2019. The politics of profit in Swedish welfare services: Four
decades of Social Democratic ambivalence. Critical Social Policy, 39(3), pp.455-476.
Mercille, J. and Murphy, E., 2016. Conceptualising European privatisation processes after the
Great Recession. Antipode, 48(3), pp.685-704.
Offe, C., 2018. The Political Economy of Privatisation. In Privatisation and the Welfare
State (pp. 19-44). Routledge. London.
Peters, M.A., 2017. From state responsibility for education and welfare to self-responsibilisation
in the market. Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education, 38(1), pp.138-145.
Pinker, R., 2017. Stigma and social welfare. Social policy and welfare pluralism: Selected
writings of Robert Pinker, p.61.

44PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
Preston, J., 2018. The wheels keep on turning: Is the end of rail franchising in Britain in
sight?. Research in Transportation Economics, 69, pp.187-196.
Quinlan, C., Babin, B., Carr, J. and Griffin, M., 2019. Business research methods. South Western
Cengage. Bristol.
Raco, M., 2016. State-led privatisation and the demise of the democratic state: Welfare reform
and localism in an era of regulatory capitalism. Routledge. London.
Ramanadham, V.V., 2019. Privatisation in the UK. Routledge. London.
Shaw, J., 2019. Competition, regulation and the privatisation of British Rail. Routledge. Bristol.
Silverman, D. ed., 2016. Qualitative research. Sage. Los Angeles.
Smith, J.A. ed., 2015. Qualitative psychology: A practical guide to research methods. Sage.
Bristol.
Spolander, G., Engelbrecht, L. and Pullen Sansfaçon, A., 2016. Social work and macro-
economic neoliberalism: Beyond the social justice rhetoric. European Journal of Social
Work, 19(5), pp.634-649.
Sullivan, M., 2018. Sociology and social welfare. Routledge. New York.
Taylor, S.J., Bogdan, R. and DeVault, M., 2015. Introduction to qualitative research methods: A
guidebook and resource. John Wiley & Sons. Los Angeles.
Taylor-Gooby, P., 2016. Choice and public policy: the limits to welfare markets. Springer.
London.

45PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
Walliman, N., 2017. Research methods: The basics. Routledge. New York.
Wilhelmsson, T. and Hurri, S., 2019. From dissonance to sense: welfare state expectations,
privatisation and private law. Routledge. London.
Woodward, N., 2019. Some Organisational Implications of Privatisation. Privatisation in
Developing Countries.

46PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
Appendix 1: Literature Review Continuation
Overview of the concept of Welfare State
Harlow and Lawler (2018) are of the viewpoint that a welfare state can be defined as a
governmental system which tries safeguard as well as promote the social and the economic well-
being of the citizens of the concerned state. Adding to this, Dovemark et al. (2018) have noted
that the goal of promoting social and economic wellbeing of the people is usually attained
through the usage of the processes of equitable distribution of wealth, offering equal
opportunities to all the people, taking public responsibility for the people who are not being able
to present themselves to avail the benefits offered by the state. In this relation, Andreotti and
Mingione (2016) have highlighted the fact that the social welfare states are completely different
from the ones which follow the concept of capitalism. For example, one of the most important
differences between a capitalist and a social welfare state lies in the attitude of the national
government towards the people. The government of a capitalist state merely considers the people
of the same to be machineries or tools whose sole purpose is to enhance the profitability of the
different business corporations operational in the nation (Woodward 2019). On the other hand,
the focus of a welfare state is on the improvement of the quality of the lives led by the common
people through the empowerment of these people both socially and economically. The resultant
effect of this is that the nations which follow the concept of welfare state take the help of
different kinds of measures that are specially intended to improve the quality of lives of the
common people and also to promote equality among the people as well (Bosanquet 2018).
However, at the same time it needs to be said that the concept of welfare state is a diminishing
one or for that matter a lesser followed one because of the extensive focus of the different

47PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
nations of the world on the aspect of capitalism for the purpose of attaining a higher level of
economic growth (Gerrard 2017).
Characteristic features of Welfare States
There are various characteristic features of the welfare states which in turn distinguish
them from the capitalist states or the other ones. Some of the most important characteristic
features of the welfare states are outlined below-
Equal opportunities
According to Pinker (2017), one of the most important features of the different welfare
states is the fact that they focus on offering equal amount or number of opportunities to all the
citizens of the nation since inequality is considered to be the root cause of the major societal as
well as economic issues faced by the people. Furthermore, by ensuring the fact that equal amount
of educational, employment, healthcare and other kinds of opportunities are available to all the
people of the nation, the national government tries to improve the condition of the common
people (Lavinas 2017). In addition to these, it had been seen that the national government of the
welfare state while promoting the notion of equality also takes the help of different kinds of
measures to ensure that the concept of equality is being effectively used by the common people
of the concerned nation (Beresford 2016). More importantly, it had been seen that stringent
actions are being taken against the individuals who try to violate the stipulations or the
regulations of the national government regarding the aspect of equal opportunities (Peters 2017).
In the light of these aspects, it can be said that the factor of equal opportunities is one of the most
important characteristic features of the welfare states.

48PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
Equitable distribution of wealth
Mercille and Murphy (2016) are of the viewpoint that one of the most important
characteristic features of the welfare states is the fact that it tries to promote the equitable
distribution of wealth among all the citizens of the nation and thereby tries to attain economic
equality. As discussed by Gardam, Giles and Hayhurst (2017), this is important since in the
majority of the nations, wherein capitalism is dominant, it had been seen that more than 90% of
the wealth of the nation is being held by less than 10% of the wealthy people of the same and this
in turn gives rise to the situation wherein the people related to the poorer section of the society
find it difficult to even sustain themselves. It is precisely this economic issue which had become
an integral part of the societal framework of the majority of the nations of the world that the
welfare states try to overcome by way of promoting the equitable distribution of wealth. The
resultant effect of this is that different kinds of measures are being undertaken by the national
governments of the welfare states for the purpose of promoting as well as safeguarding this
particular characteristic feature of their nation (Meagher and Szebehely 2019). However, at the
same time it needs to be said that this aspect or the characteristic feature of the welfare nations
had faced a substantial amount of criticism from the different nations of the world since they
believe in the idea that the wealth held by an individual should depend on the hard work done by
them and not on the decision of the national government (Drakeford 2016). Furthermore, in the
present times it had been seen that because of the system of equitable distribution of wealth there
are many people who take undue advantage of the same for getting wealth without performing
any substantial amount of labor.

49PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
Socialist national government
As discussed by Lin and Matsumura (2018), the governmental system of the different
nations which take the help of the concept of welfare state is completely based on the concept of
socialism which focuses on the concept of equality and equal growth opportunities for all the
people of the concerned nation. However, in the present times it had been seen that the national
governments of the welfare states along with the usage of the concept of socialism are also
taking the help of the concept of capitalism as well (Bel and Fageda 2017). In this relation, it
needs to be said that the effective usage of the concept of capitalism had helped the welfare
states to accelerate the pace of their economic growth which in turn had helped them to
undertake different kinds of developmental projects for the social welfare of the people (Dean
2015). However, at the same time it needs to be said that despite the usage of the process of
capitalism, the dominant form of government which is being followed within the different
welfare states is still socialism.
Control of business activities by the national government
Wilhelmsson and Hurri (2019) are of the viewpoint that one of the most important
distinguishing factors between the welfare states and the other states is the fact that within the
framework of the welfare states the majority of the business corporations operational within the
concerned nation are being controlled or regulated by the national government itself. As
discussed by Bárcena-Ruiz and Garzón (2018), this becomes important from the perspective that
the business corporations in their bid to enhance their profitability often take the help of coercive
as well as unethical measures which are completely derogatory from the perspective of the
workers. More importantly, it had been seen that in the majority of the nations, wherein the

50PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
concept of capitalism is being followed the business owners had been able to amass a substantial
amount of wealth while the condition of the working class individuals had not improved in any
substantial manner (Taylor-Gooby 2016). The resultant effect of this is that the national
government of the different welfare states tries to control as well as regulate the major business
corporations of their nation so as to ensure there is equitable distribution among all the sections
of the society and also equal opportunities are being available to all the people of the nation
(Sullivan 2018). This in turn helps them to safeguard as well as promote the social and the
economic welfare of the people of the nation and thereby attain the major purpose of the concept
of welfare state.

51PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
Appendix 2: Interview Questions
1. What according to you are the most important factors that contributed towards the
privatization of The British Railway?
2. What according to you is the effect on the social welfare of the passengers as a result of
railway privatization?
3. What are the most important implications for the operations of The British Railway on
account of its privatization?
4. Do you think that the privatization of The British Railways has been effective from the
context of public social welfare?

52PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
Appendix 3: Interview Transcript
Interview 1
Interviewer: Question 1: What according to you are the most important factors that contributed
towards the privatization of The British Railway?
Respondent: Answer 1: I personally believe that the social welfare and the economic factors
were two most important factors which contributed towards the privatization of The British
Railway. The national government of UK released the economic benefits and also the benefits
that it would offer to the common people and this in turn motivated the national government of
UK to undertake the privatization.
Interviewer: Question 2: What according to you is the effect on the social welfare of the
passengers as a result of railway privatization?
Respondent: Answer 2: I would say that the process of privatization enhanced the efficiency of
transportation services offered by The British Railways and this in turn had positively affected
the common people. For example, the people have access to more number of trains, the services
have become more-timely in nature and others and this in turn had benefited the common people.
Interviewer: Question 3: What are the most important implications for the operations of The
British Railway on account of its privatization?
Respondent: Answer 3: The process of privatization had substantially changed the operations
process used by The British Railways. For instance, although the operations processes of The
British Railways have been designed to offer the best quality transportation services to the

53PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
people yet at the same time we are required to follow the different policies as well as the
stipulations of the national government of UK.
Interviewer: Question 4: Do you think that the privatization of The British Railways has been
effective from the context of public social welfare?
Respondent: Answer 4: From personal experience I would say that the quality of railways
which have been available to the common people post the privatization are far better than the one
which was offered by the same when it was managed by the national government of UK. Thus, it
would be fair to say that the privatization had been largely successful from the perspective of the
social welfare of the public.
Interview 2
Interviewer: Question 1: What according to you are the most important factors that contributed
towards the privatization of The British Railway?
Respondent: Answer 1: I would say that the factor of social welfare was the most important one
which contributed towards the privatization of The British Railway. The national government of
UK felt that the ineffective railway services offered by it were not beneficial for the common
people and thus the privatization was undertaken by it.
Interviewer: Question 2: What according to you is the effect on the social welfare of the
passengers as a result of railway privatization?
Respondent: Answer 2: The passengers or the common people are presently enjoying regular
railway services, the number of trains have increased in an exponential manner, the wait time
between two trains had also been reduced significantly post the privatization of The British

54PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
Railways. Thus, it can be said that the privatization had directly contributed towards the welfare
of the common people of UK.
Interviewer: Question 3: What are the most important implications for the operations of The
British Railway on account of its privatization?
Respondent: Answer 3: Post-privatization we have taken into account, both the aspects of
quality and profitability into the spectrum of the railway services which are being offered by us.
More importantly, we also make it a point to follow the different dictums of the national
government of UK regarding the railway services which we need to provide and the operations
processes have been formulated or designed taking these aspects into account.
Interviewer: Question 4: Do you think that the privatization of The British Railways has been
effective from the context of public social welfare?
Respondent: Answer 4: The number of people availing the rails in the present times had surged
up substantially when compared to prior-privatization. This can be attributed to the improvement
in the quality of the rail transportation that we have been able to offer to the passengers. Thus,
from the public social welfare, I would say that the privatization had been effective and also
successful.
Interview 3
Interviewer: Question 1: What according to you are the most important factors that contributed
towards the privatization of The British Railway?
Respondent: Answer 1: The economic factor was the most important one for the privatization
which was undertaken in the 1990s of The British Railway. For instance, the national

55PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
government was quick to release the economic gains that it would derive of the entire railway
system of the nation was privatization and this in turn propelled the national government to
undertake the process of privatization.
Interviewer: Question 2: What according to you is the effect on the social welfare of the
passengers as a result of railway privatization?
Respondent: Answer 2: The common people of UK, especially the ones who frequently avail
the rails along with the national government had been the major recipients of the benefits offered
by the privatization of The British Railway. The common people have access to better railway
services which is more-timely and also efficient in comparison to the earlier times. Thus, it
would not be too far-fetched to say that the common people have been able to enjoy significant
benefits because of the privatization of The British Railway.
Interviewer: Question 3: What are the most important implications for the operations of The
British Railway on account of its privatization?
Respondent: Answer 3: We had been forced to completely change both the backstage and the
front-stage operations of The British Railways keeping into perspective the transportation or the
travel needs of the common people who frequently avail the rails. Furthermore, the different
policies of the national government related to railway transportation had also played a pivotal
role in the designing of the same.
Interviewer: Question 4: Do you think that the privatization of The British Railways has been
effective from the context of public social welfare?

56PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
Respondent: Answer 4: The common people of UK had been able to derive a substantial
amount of benefit from the privatization of The British Railway and this in turn had significantly
increased the number of passengers who avail the rails in the present times. Furthermore, the
improvement in the quality of the railway services had also positively benefited the common
people.
Interview 4
Interviewer: Question 1: What according to you are the most important factors that contributed
towards the privatization of The British Railway?
Respondent: Answer 1: I believe that the process of privatization was largely influenced by the
factor of social welfare. For example, the people in the earlier times had to face numerous issues
because of the ineffective railway services offered by The British Railway. Thus, the national
government in order to positively benefit the passengers decided to privatize The British
Railway.
Interviewer: Question 2: What according to you is the effect on the social welfare of the
passengers as a result of railway privatization?
Respondent: Answer 2: The passengers of The British Railways unlike the earlier times get
regular rails which are timely and also the nature or for that matter the quality of the
transportation services offered by The British Railways is way better than the ones offered by the
same prior-privatization. This in turn had substantially benefited the common people of the
nation of UK for whom rails are the primary mode of transportation.

57PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
Interviewer: Question 3: What are the most important implications for the operations of The
British Railway on account of its privatization?
Respondent: Answer 3: Our motto presently is to offer the best quality transportation services
to the people and the operations process which we are presently using had been designed taking
into motto into account. We understand the fact that if the people are not satisfied with the
services which we offer then they would not avail the services. Thus, our operations processes
have been designed taking into account the convenience of the passengers and also the mandates
of the national government.
Interviewer: Question 4: Do you think that the privatization of The British Railways has been
effective from the context of public social welfare?
Respondent: Answer 4: An important determinant of the effectiveness of services presently
offered by The British Railway is the fact that we have been able to increase the number of daily
passengers that we get despite Uber and others being the preferred choice of the people. Thus, I
would say that the improvement in the quality of rail transportation services had been able to
significantly benefit the common people of UK.
Interview 5
Interviewer: Question 1: What according to you are the most important factors that contributed
towards the privatization of The British Railway?
Respondent: Answer 1: I would say that the economic factor was one of the most important
ones which influenced the decision of the national government of UK to privatize. For instance,
the UK government saw the opportunity to enhance the revenue from The British Railway by

58PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
privatizing it. Another important factor which contributed towards the same was the aspect of
public social welfare. The railway transportation is one of the primary modes of transportation in
our nation and thus it is likely that the improvement of this would offer a substantial amount of
benefit to the common people.
Interviewer: Question 2: What according to you is the effect on the social welfare of the
passengers as a result of railway privatization?
Respondent: Answer 2: Post-privatization the nature as well as the quality of the railway
transportation services which are being offered by The British Railway had undergone a
substantial amount of change because of which the common people have benefited significantly.
For example, the trains have become more-timely as a matter of fact there is rarely any delay in
the departure time of the trains, the time gap between the departure of two trains had been
reduced significantly, the interior of the trains have been redesign keeping into perspective the
convenience of the passengers. These in turn had not only improved the quality of railway
transportation services which are available to the common people but has also benefited them
significantly as well.
Interviewer: Question 3: What are the most important implications for the operations of The
British Railway on account of its privatization?
Respondent: Answer 3: The operations of The British Railway presently have been designed
taking into account the economic and the social welfare factors because of which the national
government took the decision to privatize. More importantly, we are also required to take into
account the governmental legislations, stipulations and others for the designing of the backstage

59PRIVATIZATION AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WELFARE
and the front-stage processes that we use for offering quality transportation services to the
customers.
Interviewer: Question 4: Do you think that the privatization of The British Railways has been
effective from the context of public social welfare?
Respondent: Answer 4: The privatization of The British Railway by improving the quality of
the transportation services which are available to the common people of our nation had directly
contributed to their welfare. For instance, unlike the earlier times, the passengers in the present
times enjoy hassle free journeys, are being able to reach their destinations on time, do not have to
wait for a substantial amount of time if they miss a particular train and others. These aspects
have directly contributed towards the welfare of the passengers who avail the transportation
services offered by The British Railway.