Calling in the army to break strikes is a sign of government weakness – not strength

Editorial: The British army should not be used in the way the police were during the miners’ strike of 1984-85

Sooner or later, the government will have to engage more energetically with the unions (AFP via Getty)

A cold snap in December is hardly a political act, or a surprise. But this year, the usual seasonal paralysis on the roads does add to a sense of national malaise in Britain. Nine hours on the M20 seems to be the unwelcome record so far. A little more of the wrong kind of snow, and the RMT won’t need to bother going on strike. The national mood is getting grimmer.

The average household is already fretting about the impending turkey shortage (caused by the resurgence of avian flu), cutting back on the weekly shop, postponing a house move, and whether to turn the heating on – and we have now been advised by a cabinet minister to avoid travelling abroad this Christmas, leaving aside the chaos expected to affect domestic rail services.

Many poorer families have it even worse, as they are forced to choose between heating and eating. Food banks, cynically rebranded by some as “food pantries”, can’t cope. The homeless have it worse still, as we start to see the first sub-zero temperatures of the winter.