More action looms as Britain is hit by wave of strikes

A wave of industrial militancy swept Britain yesterday as hundreds of thousands of local government workers walked out and a stoppage by London Underground workers brought services to a virtual standstill.

As local authority staff staged their first-ever "all-out" strike and Tube workers took action over safety, train drivers' leaders announced three 48-hour strikes at First North Western.

The country also moved closer to a national strike by firefighters after pay talks broke up without agreement. A final meeting will be held next week to resolve the dispute. Last night leaders of tanker drivers who deliver to Shell fuel depots announced a strike for three days from Friday after rejecting a pay offer of 4.5 per cent.

And baggage handlers and check-in staff at Heathrow and Gatwick airports voted by almost nine to one in favour of strikes over pay, threatening travel chaos this summer.

John Edmonds, general secretary of the GMB general union, accused the Government of "losing control" of the industrial situation. He urged the Government to get a grip in particular on the pay dispute at local authorities.

The walkout closed schools, libraries, museums and leisure centres and refuse remained uncollected in many towns and cities. Local authority employers insisted that the response to the strike was "patchy".

The Association of London Government (ALG) said only one in 10 schools in the capital were closed by the walkout even though workers were joining the national strike over pay and a secondary dispute over a London allowance. Dave Prentis, general secretary of Unison, the biggest union involved in the council dispute, said the strike had been "rock solid" across the country and support from the public has been "amazing".

Jack Dromey, national organiser of the Transport and General Workers Union, called for the Prime Minister to tell the authorities to return to negotiations. He warned that if no fresh talks were arranged, unions would meet on Friday to plan a further round of industrial action.

Sir Jeremy Beecham, chairman of the Local Government Association, said the offer was fair and affordable while the vote for strike action was less than overwhelming. "Councils have to look at what they can afford in the light of pressure on services and the impact on council tax," he said.

Meanwhile, thousands of drivers, station staff and signallers on London Underground walked out at 8pm yesterday. The RMT union has called the action because of its concerns about the public-private partnership (PPP) of the Tube. LU warned the three million passengers who use the Tube daily that services would be "severely disrupted" today.