British minister condemns rail strikes as ‘huge mistake’

• Britain’s transport secretary, Grant Shapps, has described planned train strikes as a “big blunder”.
• More than 50,000 train workers will strike on June 21, 23, and 25 in a dispute over pay freezes and job losses.
• The RMT union has described it as the sector’s largest strike in more than 30 years.

LONDON – Britain’s transport secretary, Grant Shapps, has described planned train strikes as a “big blunder” that will prevent people from attending doctor’s appointments, taking school exams, or travelling to work.

It also shows the constraints on British households, which are facing the most severe cost-of-living squeeze since the 1950s, with rail workers claiming salary cutbacks at a time when inflation is skyrocketing.

In response to suggestions that the government should intervene to attempt to compel a deal and avoid a strike, Shapps said on Sunday that firms should negotiate with their employees.

“I think this is a tremendous mistake,” Shapps told Sky News. “Unfortunately, the unions… have been pushing for this strike throughout.” “It’s a disaster, and it’s not the way you conduct yourself on the railway.”

More than 50,000 train workers will go on strike on June 21, 23, and 25 in a dispute over pay freezes and job losses, in what the Rail, Maritime, and Transport Workers (RMT) union has described as the sector’s largest strike in more than 30 years.

Mick Lynch, the RMT’s general secretary, claimed his union was only seeking a salary increase that reflected the cost of living, but that train operators were offering “nowhere near that,” and that he feared thousands of people will lose their jobs as a result.

The main opposition Labour Party has suggested that the government get involved in the talks in order to find a solution.

“This is a government that came to office in 2019 on a pledge to level up,” Lisa Nandy, Labour’s policy head on overcoming regional inequalities, said, referring to the declared goal of reducing regional economic imbalances.

“Instead, they’ve presided over complete catastrophe, chaos at the ports, chaos on the railways, chaos at airports, chaos everywhere, and it’s all because this is a government that isn’t doing its job.”