The unions are right – ministers must do more to bring strikes to an end

Editorial: What has been dubbed a ‘summer of discontent’ could turn into the biggest wave of strikes since the 1978-79 winter of discontent

(Dave Brown)

Leaders of the rail unions have warned that their long-running dispute over pay, jobs and conditions will continue “for as long as it takes”, and could last “indefinitely” unless government ministers intervene in negotiations. After a one-day strike on Thursday left only 20 per cent of train services running across the UK and a shutdown of the London Underground on Friday, Saturday will be another day of disruption across the rail network.

Union leaders claim the Conservative Party leadership contest is prolonging the dispute but this is unlikely; ministers would still be taking potshots at the trade unions and talking up the Labour Party’s union links even if the Tories were not in the process of choosing the country’s next prime minister. However, the unions are right to say that ministers could and should be doing more to bring the damaging dispute to an end.

Whether it likes it or not, the government is a player. The hangover of the pandemic, with a drop in passenger numbers, has forced it into a closer relationship with train operating companies, including oversight of industrial relations. It is creating Great British Railways, which will oversee infrastructure, ticket prices and timetables.