The chief executives of three firms that rent out trains to Britain’s railways were paid a combined £3.5m last year as they passed on almost £400m to shareholders in dividends.
Rail unions accused the rolling stock companies (Roscos) of raking in profits at passengers’ expense.
The figures emerged in accounts published this week after ministers announced a new rolling stock strategy for Britain’s railways.
The government is considering direct ownership of trains through the public body Great British Railways rather than leasing them from the private sector.
The latest figures show Porterbrook Holdings paid £80m in dividends and increased the pay of its chief executive, Mary Grant, by more than 10% to £1.44m.
Eversholt Rail paid out £200m in 2025 shortly before it was sold by CK Hutchison to Beacon Rail, with its departing CEO, Mary Kenny, paid £1.33m.
Angel Trains paid £111m in dividends and a relatively modest £700,000 to its boss, Malcolm Brown.
Their pay far outstrips the highest salaries elsewhere on the railway, including the bosses of Network Rail and HS2.
The RMT union called for a levy on Roscos after highlighting the dividend payments and salaries. It said the three biggest Roscos had paid out £2.4bn over the last 10 years in dividends.
The general secretary of the RMT, Eddie Dempsey, said: “The government’s commitment to explore publicly owned rolling stock for the new trains in the future is welcome but in a cost of living crisis we need action now.
“We are calling on the government to use this month’s budget to introduce a ‘cost of travel’ levy on profits to fund a 3.4% fare cut, rather than watching the cash being salted away.”
The transport secretary, Heidi Alexander, told the Labour conference on Monday that if Great British Railways owning trains would best serve taxpayers and passengers, then we should do it”.
According to the rail regulator, operators last year spent more than £4bn leasing trains from the Roscos, whose net profit margin was 18.5%.
A spokesperson for Porterbrook said it had “deployed over £1bn of capital in new trains, fleet upgrades, traction innovation and rail infrastructure since 2020, and we are actively looking to invest a further £1bn in the years ahead”.
They said the group’s companies were UK tax resident, and had paid £82m in the past three years, adding: “It is because of the funding that our shareholders provide that we can make substantial investments in the railway.”
Angel Trains is incorporated in Jersey and within the realm of UK taxes. A spokesperson said: “We believe decisions on future fleets should be focused on securing the best outcomes for passengers, while maintaining the conditions and opportunities needed to attract future investment into the railway. We look forward to continuing to work constructively with government and Great British Railways.”
Eversholt and its new owner, Beacon Rail, were approached for comment.
