Rail strike condemned as threat to election

The longest railway strike in British history was announced last night, as industrial action threatens chaos during the election and the run-up to Christmas. The Rail Maritime and Transport Union announced the unprecedented 27-day walkout as part of its long dispute with management over guards on South Western Railway. The action comes in addition to threatened disruption at airports, universities and the postal network, prompting calls for new legislation.

THE longest railway strike in British history was announced last night, as industrial action threatens chaos during the election campaign and the runup to Christmas.

The Rail Maritime and Transport Union announced the unprecedented 27-day walkout yesterday as part of its long dispute with management over guards on South Western Railway trains.

A No10 spokesman condemned the action – which comes in addition to threatened disruption in airports, universities and the postal network – as “deeply damaging”.

Ministers yesterday accused the Communication Workers’ Union of making a “politically calculated” threat to wreck the general election by refusing to deliver millions of postal votes as part of a pay dispute.

Tory MPS likened the disruption to the “Winter of Discontent” in 1978-79, and called for the law to be tightened to make it more difficult for unions to disrupt elections.

Tim Loughton, MP for East Worthing and Shoreham, said: “If it comes down to it, and these disputes cannot be resolved, Parliament should step in and make changes to the law.

“We cannot allow British democracy to be held to ransom in this way.”

A series of controversial trade union reforms which tightened the rules for strike ballots became law in 2016.

The latest strike will see South Western Railway workers walk out between Dec 2 and New Year’s Day.

Conductors will return to work on election day and for Christmas Day and Boxing Day – when no trains run.

South Western carries nearly 600,000 passengers every day from Britain’s busiest railway station, London Waterloo.

“This will be the longest nearly continuous rail strike in British history,” RMT assistant general secretary Steve Hedley told The Daily Telegraph.

“We know it will cause disruption over the Christmas period, but our members have simply had enough.”

Yesterday’s announcement came after the RMT accused South Western of “dangling” a potential breakthrough deal and then failing to honour it.

Mick Cash, the RMT general secretary, said: “As long as the company continues to refuse to give assurances on the future operational role of the guard, we will remain in dispute.”

It was also announced yesterday that university workers are to strike for eight days over pay and pensions.

Members of the University and College Union (UCU) will walk out between Nov 25 and Dec 4, hitting 60 universities across the UK.

BA pilots from the BALPA union have also threatened to strike over the festive period in a long-running row over pay.