Politics latest news: It ‘wouldn’t be right’ for Government to intervene in rail strikes, says minister
Simon Clarke #SimonClarke
A minister today insisted it “wouldn’t be right” for the Government to intervene in talks between union bosses and rail chiefs as the nation braces for a week of disruptive strike action.
Simon Clarke, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, said the Government does not “control all the levers” in the dispute and stressed it is for Network Rail, the train operating companies and the unions to resolve the row over pay, jobs and conditions.
Mr Clarke said: “We don’t own the railways ourselves and it wouldn’t be right for us to substitute ourselves for the role of the employer. We recognise these strikes are a huge inconvenience for millions of people.
“I absolutely want them not to go ahead. But it isn’t the case that we can put ourselves into the hot seat in place of the legal employer.”
Mr Clarke’s comments are likely to prompt accusations of the Government washing its hands of the issue, with Labour having accused ministers of not doing enough to avert the strikes which will start tomorrow in what will be the biggest walkout in the industry for more than 30 years.
Members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) at Network Rail (NR) and 13 train operators will strike on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, with only around one in five trains running and disruption to services on days following the action. The RMT and Unite is also holding a 24-hour walkout on London Underground tomorrow.
Follow the latest updates below.
Sign up to the Front Page newsletter for free: Your essential guide to the day’s agenda from The Telegraph – direct to your inbox seven days a week.
08:55 AM RMT demands more Labour support
The RMT union has urged the Labour Party to show more public support for its planned rail industrial action.
Labour has so far said it does not want the strikes to go ahead but it has also not criticised the unions.
John Leach, the assistant general secretary at the RMT, was asked if he wants to see more support from Labour and he said: “We want political support wherever it can come from and the Labour Party really should refocus here on its responsibility to represent those in society that are looking for a better situation. That is us in this occasion so we would like more.”
Mr Leach also called on the Government to “rise to the occasion” and intervene in the talks.
“They are absolutely abjectly failing in their responsibilities, they are nowhere to be seen apart from name calling from the sidelines,” he told the BBC. “They need to do the right thing for the railway people of Britain.”
08:48 AM ‘We are determined to see this through’
Rail bosses told The Telegraph they are now preparing for a war of “attrition” with unions that could last for months and see repeated strikes (you can read the full story here).
John Leach, the assistant general secretary at the RMT union, was asked if his members are prepared for a prolonged battle.
He told the BBC: “The men and women in my union who keep Britain moving across the entire railway network are some of the most determined, professional, dedicated people you will ever meet.
“They kept this country moving through the pandemic. They keep the railways moving every single day and it is that kind of grit and determination that is going to mean that they will stick with this negotiation and [secure] justice for themselves in that regard, right through to the end.
“That is why we are so clear about this. We didn’t want to be in this situation… but we are determined to see this through.”
08:40 AM
Video: Minister urges rail workers to ‘get around the table’ ahead of planned strikes (PA Media)
Minister urges rail workers to ‘get around the table’ ahead of planned strikes
SHARE
SHARE
TWEET
SHARE
Click to expand
UP NEXT
RMT: Pay offer ‘not acceptable’
John Leach, the assistant general secretary at the RMT union, said the pay offer from Network Rail and the train operating companies is “nowhere near enough” and “not acceptable”.
Mr Leach told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme: “You can split these negotiations in two. So let’s look at Network Rail first. We are dealing with a company, or Network Rail itself, where staff haven’t received a pay rise for a number of years now and we have been offered two per cent.
“That was the offer that was made late last week. It is nowhere near enough with inflation at 11 per cent. We are looking for a package also around the issue of job security because… the company have put on the table a kind of an all-in package of just under 3,000 job cuts, a wholescale re-organisation of the workforce and in return for that, eight per cent less than inflation. So obviously that is not acceptable.
“On the train operating companies it is kind of worse. No pay rise on the table at the moment. Every single ticket office in the country being closed. A form of internal fire and rehire where staff have got to go through a reevaluation process and it is just not acceptable.”
08:22 AM ‘We cannot have inflation-busting pay increases’
A minister has told public sector workers they need to understand they “cannot have inflation-busting pay increases” because doing so would fuel spiking inflation.
Simon Clarke, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, told Sky News: “In the current situation with inflation which is a real issue, we do have to be very, very sensitive to it. If we start having pay awards which take us close to double digits then we are going to see this problem prolonged and that is just the economic reality of where we find ourselves at the moment.”
He added: “We do absolutely need to have an understanding across the wider public sector that we cannot have inflation-busting pay increases because that will in turn drive the problem we are trying to sort.”
08:17 AM ‘There’s a variety of things that need to change’
Simon Clarke, the Chief Secretary to Treasury, said any pay rises in the rail industry should be linked to “productivity reform” in the sector as he said parts of the railway operation are “seriously outdated”.
He told Sky News: “The issue we need to secure for the railways is about making sure that you have a sustainable offer on pay but also linked to productivity reform as well because the railways are not run as efficiently as they could be.
“There are all sorts of practices there which are seriously outdated which make the railways both more expensive to operate but also less efficient in terms of their operation than they otherwise ought to be and so there’s a variety of things that need to change.”
08:09 AM Minister: ‘Wouldn’t be right’ for Government to intervene
It “wouldn’t be right” for the Government to intervene in talks between union bosses and rail chiefs, Simon Clarke claimed this morning.
The Chief Secretary to the Treasury was told during an interview on Sky News that if the Government does not get involved to stop the strikes then the nation is going to grind to a halt.
He said: “Well, ultimately we don’t control all the levers that need to be held here as the employer. The employer is Network Rail and the train operating companies.
“They are the ones who need to drive the programme of reform to make the railway sustainable. We don’t own the railways ourselves and it wouldn’t be right for us to substitute ourselves for the role of the employer.
“We recognise these strikes are a huge inconvenience for millions of people. I absolutely want them not to go ahead. But it isn’t the case that we can put ourselves into the hot seat in place of the legal employer.”
08:06 AM ‘Likely’ rail strikes will go ahead
Simon Clarke, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, is on the morning media round for the Government.
He said it is “likely” that the rail strikes will go ahead from tomorrow.
Speaking to Sky News, he said: “I fear it is likely that they will go ahead. Clearly we will continue to support the negotiations until such time as there is no more time to discuss.
“But I think the public do this week need to be aware there will be very substantial disruption and it is therefore sensible to make preparations for that.”
08:03 AM Good morning
Good morning and welcome to today’s politics live blog.
Britain is braced for a week of disruptive rail strikes, with the biggest walkout for more than 30 years due to get underway from tomorrow.
Talks between unions and rail companies remain ongoing but there is little optimism of a breakthrough.
Meanwhile, ministers are under growing pressure to intervene and make a last-ditch bid to stop the industrial action from going ahead.
There is a lot going on this morning and I will guide you through the key developments.