Rail strikes: Millions face travel misery today as railways grind to halt AGAIN amid fears of another walkout in 2 weeks
BRITAIN’S railways will grind to a miserable halt again today — amid fears militant unions are already drawing up plans for a crippling second wave of strikes in just two weeks.
Talks between the hardline RMT and Network Rail to avert today’s walkout collapsed in acrimony last night.
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps branded union boss Mick Lynch a liar — while the RMT leader said Mr Shapps was responsible for “wrecking” the negotiations.
Now it’s feared that once this week’s first wave of strikes is over, commuters will get only a fortnight’s respite before the RMT strikes again.
Mad Mick threatened more misery to come, saying the union would “continue with our industrial campaign until we get a negotiated settlement”.
Its can announce further strike dates with just two weeks’ notice.
Network Rail is expecting a decision on new strike dates to be made as early as next week. Whitehall and railway officials fear the next wave could begin on July 9.
Another wave of strikes could plunge holiday plans into chaos — potentially beginning just as schools are preparing to break up.
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The RMT has a mandate that allows it to announce new strikes until late November without having to hold a fresh ballot.
It comes amid ratcheting tensions over pay — as official figures published yesterday showed inflation has hit 9.1 per cent.
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Trains across Britain had barely recovered from Tuesday’s walkout, with less than two-thirds of services running yesterday, when the latest talks ended in stalemate and finger pointing.
Last night, the RMT ordered its 40,000 members out again today as it fights reforms that will lead to automation replacing 2,900 staff in coming years and demands a massive pay hike.
Mr Shapps hit out: “I want to urge Mick Lynch and his members to stop wasting time making false claims in the media and instead return to the negotiating table so an agreement can be reached.”
Only around 60 per cent of services ran yesterday as it took time for trains and crews to get to depots after the walkout.
Last night, some services were already beginning to wind down, with another strike planned for Saturday if a resolution cannot be reached before then.
'Unable to travel to exam halls'
As millions worked from home, students complained they missed their GCSE and A-Level exams.
Jessica Pinkett, Head of Youth Insights at Student Beans, said: “With two days of industrial action, and the rest of the week plagued with delays and cancellations, there is concern some students may miss A-Level and GCSE exams if cancellations and delays occur on their journey.”
She added: “Students deserve reassurance there will be special consideration for cases where they are unable to travel to exam halls.”
Yesterday, the TSSA union settled on a 7.1 per cent pay increase with Merseyrail and the RMT is eyeing a similar package in return for signing up to modernisation.
But that’s far higher than Ministers want public sector workers to receive as they fear it will see inflation continue to spiral. In a bid to ease the strike chaos today, Ministers will bring forward long-promised plans for agency workers to stand in for strikers.
The PM’s plan would help to thwart strikes by allowing others who are trained to step in instead. MPs will vote on the plan, which could come into being next month, in coming weeks.
It will force Labour to finally decide whether they back the strikers or the millions of workers who have faced travel chaos this week.
Announcing the plan to allow the hiring of agency staff, Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng said: “Repealing these 1970s-era restrictions will give businesses freedom to access fully skilled staff at speed, all the while allowing people to get on with their lives uninterrupted to help keep the economy ticking.”
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Meanwhile, hundreds of bus drivers are to go on strike in a dispute over their pay, it emerged last night.
Members of the Unite union — employed by Stagecoach in Merseyside — will walk out on June 30 and again on July 4.
