Train strikes last LIVE LIVE: Passengers blast rail unions for ‘selfish’ walkouts as commuters suffer third day of travel chaos
Commuter commuters expressed their frustration as their journeys were disrupted for the third consecutive day due to a strike by train drivers.
Services were paralyzed by the walkout of Aslef members from 15 rail companies in a long-running pay dispute, with some areas without trains for an entire day.
There were no services on the South Eastern, Thameslink, Great Northern and Avanti West Coast on Thursday morning, while the South Western Railway and Greater Anglia were limited to skeleton services at Waterloo and Liverpool Street.
Victoria, normally one of the busiest stations in the county, was closed, with no Southern or Gatwick Express trains running. Passengers there described the situation as a “nightmare” and “bad for Britain” – and accused unions of “losing the plot” due to “self-serving” strikes.
Meanwhile, the government has announced it will bring a bill to parliament in the next few weeks to “ensure minimum levels of safety” during protests for services including fire, ambulance and rail.
Unions and the Labor Party condemned the proposed law, saying it was an “act of desperation” and an “attack on working people”.
The RMT is staging another 48-hour strike from Friday in its bitter dispute over jobs, pay and conditions.
Live updates
The live stream is ending
That’s it for our live stream today. Check in the morning.
Trade union: government bill “no more than a smoke screen”
Responding to the government’s strike announcement, Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “This offer of so-called ‘pay negotiations’ by the government is gambling of the highest order. This is nothing more than a smoke screen.
“Bills need to be paid now, families of key workers are suffering now, our public health service needs action now.
“The idea that we would cancel industrial action on ongoing pay issues to discuss the 2023/24 government evidence at the Pay Review Authority is, frankly, no joke.
“Tomorrow is not even jam.”
Unite General Secretary Sharon Graham
/ ON wireThe proposed bill may not last long, according to the lawyer
A senior employment lawyer said the government’s proposed strike bill could be short-lived even if it passes parliament.
Tom Long, employment partner and industrial relations specialist at law firm Shakespeare Martineau, said: “Apart from the fact that unions are unlikely to accept this without a fight, it could take months to get through Parliament and even if it does, Labour’s the party has openly stated its intention to repeal it if they are elected in the next two years.
“Designed to protect minimum levels of service, the current legislation is limited to what the government considers to be ‘essential public services’, such as nursing and the fire service, so will have no direct impact on businesses outside these areas.
“However, it could be argued that these ‘essential public services’ are areas where the government could be held liable for the consequences of a strike, such as delayed operations and hospital appointments.”
Labor says proposed bill ‘offensive’
Labor deputy leader Angela Rayner has branded the government’s planned minimum service level legislation “unworkable” and said Labor would oppose the bill.
The shadow labor minister said: “It is insulting to key workers that Rishi Sunak believes that threatening to sack teachers and nurses will end the strikes.
“At every stage, the government tried to derail the negotiations and introduce wrenches at the last minute. Now the prime minister is wasting time on low-quality obstacles, which, as even his minister of transport admits, will not work.”
Deputy Leader of the Labor Party Angela Rayner
/ ON wireShapps calls proposed bill ‘very sensible’
Business Minister Grant Shapps has rejected suggestions that a planned new law on minimum security levels will affect the human rights of union members.
He told broadcasters: “First of all, the civilized European countries, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, they all have some minimum level of security.
“The idea that the ambulance may not arrive because of the strike, I consider unacceptable.
“We do not propose to go all the way. In other countries, parts of America, Canada, Australia, there is legislation that completely prohibits these blue lights from conducting strikes.
“We don’t offer that. I think it’s very reasonable what we’re proposing, but I think the time has come and it brings us in line with other European countries.”
Business Secretary Grant Shapps
/ ON wireWhat strike bill is the government proposing?
The government has announced that it will bring a bill to parliament in the next few weeks which it says will ensure a minimum level of security during protests for services including fire, ambulance and rail.
Business Secretary Grant Shapps said in a written statement: “As the past year has demonstrated, large-scale and repeated industrial action can be a serious drag on economic growth by keeping people out of work.
“Putting in place a safety net of minimum service levels to ensure the public are not put at risk during a strike is the best way to balance the ability to strike while protecting the wider public.
“This package of measures will bring the UK into line with many countries around the world, such as France and Spain, which already have minimum service agreements.
“Today’s reforms follow changes to the law introduced by the government in July 2022 to allow businesses to provide skilled workers through agencies to fill vital staffing gaps caused by industrial strikes.”
‘Desperate act’: Unions react to planned legislation
Unions have hit back at the government’s planned new law on minimum safety standards during protests for services including fire, ambulance and rail.
A GMB spokesman said: “This is a desperate act by the Government, who are trying anything to distract attention from the chaos they have created over 13 years of failing our public services.”
Fire Brigades Union general secretary Matt Wrack said: “This is an empty proposal from the Tory government and a meaningless stunt from Grant Shapps.”
Meanwhile, Public and Commercial Services union general secretary Mark Serwotka said: “Just when you thought the government couldn’t go lower, ministers say they are looking to fight strikes by making them illegal rather than negotiating with unions.”
Minimum safety levels will be set for fire, ambulance and rail services
/ ON wireNew ‘attack on workers’ strike legislation
Responding to the government’s plans to introduce new strike legislation, TUC general secretary Paul Novak said: “This is an attack on the right to strike. It’s an attack on working people, and it’s an attack on one of our long-held British freedoms.
“This means that if workers democratically vote to strike, they can be forced to work and fired if they don’t. This is wrong, unworkable and almost certainly illegal.
“The announcement offers nothing more to help with this year’s wage and cost of living crisis. The only proposal for negotiations is for next year. But it is necessary to resolve the existing disputes and raise the salaries of state employees now.
TUC General Secretary Paul Novak
/ ON wireA stalemate holds back progress
Mick Whelan outside Euston
/ PAA six-month standoff between striking rail workers and the government is holding back progress on clean transport, according to a union leader.
Aslef general secretary Mick Whelan said the impasse over pay talks was distracting rail chiefs from making Britain’s rail network more sustainable.
He added that lack of investment in railways and higher train fares have forced commuters to choose less environmentally friendly modes of transport such as the car.
Mr Whelan joined several train drivers striking outside London’s Euston station on Thursday, while thousands of other Aslef members picketed across the country in the sixth day of action since last summer.
Asked whether the ongoing row was preventing rail leaders from improving clean transport, Mr Whelan said he “doesn’t see how” ministers will be able to meet climate change targets without “putting rail at the heart” of their politicians.
The government is promoting anti-strike legislation
The government is continuing to implement plans to introduce new legislation on “minimum levels of security” during protests.
The Business Department has announced that a bill will be introduced to Parliament in the coming weeks to ensure that vital public services will have to carry out an “essential function” when workers go on strike.
Minimum safety levels will be set for fire, ambulance and rail services, and the government has said it will consult on “adequate levels of coverage” for these sectors.
The announcement came amid a wave of strikes, including a walkout by train drivers on Thursday, which paralyzed rail services.
Unions have reacted furiously to the move, saying it will do nothing to resolve the disputes that erupt every week across the country.
https://www.standard.co.uk/news/london/thursday-train-strike-aslef-impact-on-tube-elizabeth-line-overground-circle-line-heathrow-express-gatwick-rishi-sunak-laws-b1050897.html
