Second warning. The European Commission's latest proposals on rail transport should not be assessed in the light of the various concepts of Services of General Interest (SGIs), or the timetable of its liberalisation. The whens and hows can be fought out later; but the starting point is that which Loyola de Palacio, European Commissioner in charge of the project, summed up in a few words: "'it's the survival of rail that's at stake". Rail as a means of transport is not under discussion; its...