THE Government should shelve plans for a 3.2 per cent rise in rail ticket prices in the New Year, according to South Lakes MP Tim Farron.

Mr Farron is tabling a House of Commons motion on the issue this week and is joining calls from three former Conservative ministers, Grant Shapps, Michael Fallon and Tim Loughton, for the Department for Transport to freeze fares for 2019.

Rail fares in the UK have risen by 42 per cent in the past 10 years, while passengers have continued to suffer disruptions with the South Lakes area being particularly badly hit, including every single train on the Lakes Line being cancelled for the whole of June.

“After a year of unprecedented chaos on our railways, it simply beggars belief that fed up passengers are being forced by Chris Grayling to cough up even more money," said Mr Farron.

“People are already essentially paying first class ticket prices for fifth rate services-why should they continue to pay more and more for a service that is simply getting worse and worse?

“I’m tabling a motion in Parliament so that MPs from across the political divide are able to send a loud and clear message to the Government that these outrageous plans must be binned.”