Rail union dinosaurs in plot to sabotage the Queen’s Jubilee

24hr Tube walkout will target station nearest Buckingham Palace

MILITANT union barons vowed yesterday to inflict chaos on the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.

Bosses of the RMT rail union ordered strikes during the celebrations that will hit two key London Underground stations – one of which is the nearest to Buckingham Palace.

Staff at Green Park and Euston will walk out for 24 hours on June 3. The RMT confirmed drivers will also strike on the Central, Jubilee and Victoria lines that evening and on June 4, with no services after 9pm on each day.

And train conductors for operator TransPennine Express will strike for 48 hours from June 4. It means no services will link some northern English cities with the West Coast main line, one of the main inter-city routes to London from the North West and West Midlands.

The strikes threaten to tarnish the four days of national celebrations for millions.

Green Park is the nearest stop to Buckingham Palace, while Euston Underground station is a key hub for passengers coming into the capital on the West Coast main line from Scotland, the North West of England and West Midlands.

They will not open for 24 hours from the early hours of June 3.

The Night Tube walkouts on June 3 and 4 are part of a long-running dispute over pay and conditions, as is the TransPennine Express walkout.

They could cause chaos for thousands of concert-goers who have tickets to attend the

‘This is a cynical and selfish stunt’

Platinum Party at the Palace on the evening of June 4. Downing Street and Conservative MPs condemned the planned action for showing little respect to the Queen and called on RMT chiefs to call it off.

Labour – which has accepted more than £250,000 in donations from the RMT since 2015 – was in chaos over the strikes.

Party leader Sir Keir Starmer failed to condemn them but London Mayor Sadiq Khan said union bosses should call off the action.

The RMT said the station strikes were over claims of ‘years of intimidation, bullying and unjustified sackings’ by a manager.

About 80 allege they are the victims of ‘tyrannical’ behaviour and want the individual concerned removed by Transport for London (TfL), which Mr Khan chairs. TfL said it is investigating.

A Labour spokesman, asked twice whether Sir Keir condemned the strikes, said: ‘We never want to see industrial action that’s going to disrupt the public, particularly on an occasion like the Platinum Jubilee weekend where obviously we want the focus to be on celebrating the great service of Her Majesty to this country.’

RMT boss Mick Lynch said: ‘Our strike on June 3 will cause significant disruption to people wishing to celebrate the Queen’s Jubilee.

‘However, if Tube bosses do the right thing, and deal appropriately with the manager in question, we can find a just resolution to this dispute.’

The strikes could re-ignite the long-running debate about whether tougher laws are needed to ban walkouts by workers who deliver ‘critical services’, including public transport.

Sir Bob Neill, Tory MP for Bromley and Chislehurst, said: ‘The idea of trying to disrupt a holiday and day of national celebration, shows not only how little respect the hard Left-wing leaders of the RMT have for Her Majesty’s lifetime of service, but also how completely out of touch they are with ordinary hardworking members of the public, who will see this for the cynical and selfish stunt that it is.’

Stephen Hammond, the MP for Wimbledon, said it was ‘utterly shameless to strike on a weekend of national celebration’, with the Prime Minister’s spokesman adding: ‘I don’t think we want to see any disruption to London’s transport system at such a moment when people are trying to come together to honour this Jubilee year.’

A Government source added: ‘Does the RMT really want to spoil the day of thousands of people wanting to wish Her Majesty well? Isn’t this a time to be a little generous of heart and save this dispute for another day?’

A TfL spokesman said: ‘We hold our people to high standards and ensure everyone is treated fairly.

‘We’re aware of this dispute and are carrying out an urgent review in a bid to resolve it.’