Government plans to renationalise railways will establish new public body to improve the network

Sunday train services will be as reliable as those on weekdays under plans to renationalise the railways, the new transport secretary will claim in a keynote speech on Monday.

Issuing a series of pledges on which the government will be judged by millions of passengers – as well as its political opponents – Heidi Alexander will cite the creation of a network “where Sunday services are as ­reliable as Monday’s” as one of her key priorities.