WE must preface any discussion on the rail crisis with a tribute to the workers. Britain's railways have come close to a standstill in recent weeks, and the industry is the target of unprecedented criticism. Through it all - and sometimes in the face of public hostility - frontline staff have worked long and hard to keep a service running.

As timetables have been scrapped and schedules improvised, station staff have coped with admirable calm. Train crews' shifts have grown longer with journey times. They deserve our thanks.

Aside from the flooding, the widespread chaos has been caused by the safety audit of hundreds of miles of track. The Hatfield crash revealed holes in Railtrack's safety systems and boss Gerald Corbett was right to insist on a full-scale check of the lines.

Today Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott hosted a summit involving Mr Corbett, the Strategic Rail Authority and the Rail Regulator. It was crucial that they set a date for the resumption of the full rail timetable. Looming disruption on the roads, caused by planned petrol protests later this month, made it even more imperative that the railways were brought back up to strength.

But this only solves the immediate problem. Even when the railways are operating normally, passengers suffer from overcrowding, delays and cancellations. For this they pay some of the highest fares in the world.

It is clear that the privatised system as it stands is not working. But neither, it must be admitted, did the fully nationalised British Rail.

Today two North Yorkshire Labour MPs called for the Government to repossess a stake in the railways. As the State subsidises the network by billions of pounds, perhaps it should enjoy part-ownership, with particular responsibility for safety.

But this is only one idea in the post-Hatfield rail debate. Our rail network must change and everyone should have an input into that change - private companies, politicians and particularly passengers. The future of Britain's railways starts here.