London Strikes Sadiq Khan Accuses Government Of Deliberately Provoking Unions Business Live Business

London Mayor Sadiq Khan accused the British government of “deliberately provoking” strikes on the Tube, Overground and buses which he said could damage the capital’s recovery from the worst of the coronavirus pandemic. “I am concerned that the government is almost deliberately provoking industrial action in London,” Khan said in an interview with Sky News on Friday morning. Khan oversees Transport for London (TfL), which employs many of the London Underground and London workers who are striking on Friday. The Rail, Shipping and Transport (RMT) union is negotiating with TfL, but at the same time TfL is negotiating its long-term funding with the government. The government had to step in to rescue TfL, which normally depends heavily on fares revenue, after ticket sales fell at the start of the coronavirus pandemic. RMT leader Mick Lynch said workers were caught in a “deadlock” between the government and the mayor. In a separate interview with the Press Association, Khan said: I am disappointed by the strikes today. It is ordinary Londoners, commuters and businesses who will be affected today as we try to recover. If we were talking in January, the number of people using the tube was about 45% compared to pre-pandemic [levels]. Now it’s over 70%, I worry that next week when public transport is fully operational we will have fewer people using public transport which limits our ability to recover sooner. Updated at 10.41 BST Important events BETA filters Key facts (4)RMT (7)London (7)UK (5)TfL (5)Transport for London (5) To add to the disruption to services, Thameslink reported this morning that all lines through Royston were blocked… by a balloon. The balloon got caught in overhead wires, the rail operator said. Thameslink, run by Govia, is the UK’s largest rail franchise, operating lines such as those between Bedford and Brighton via London. ⚠️ We have been advised that a balloon has been caught on overhead power lines in Royston. Your journey will be delayed by up to 15 minutes. ℹ️ More to come. — Thameslink (@TLRailUK) August 19, 2022 The balloon has since been removed and the line reopened. Here was the offending item: 🎈 Sorry for the delay today, we hope to get you up and running as soon as possible. 🎫 Tickets will also be accepted on alternative Thameslink/Great North routes to reach your destination. pic.twitter.com/R8GNbiGbZS — Thameslink (@TLRailUK) August 19, 2022 Updated at 11.04 BST There is heavy traffic in some parts of London as people try to find their way around the strikes, according to BBC Radio London. Here are some of the worst queues this morning due to the #TubeStrike – the #A4 in the city from Hammersmith to Earl’s Court, all approaches to Holland Park roundabout, the #A501 Grays Inn Rd to King’s Cross and the Hwy approaching Tower Bridge pic.twitter.com/8rd4F49vNu — BBC Radio London Travel (@BBCTravelAlert) August 19, 2022

Sadiq Khan says the government may be “deliberately provoking” strikes in London

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, speaks to the media during a visit to the Newham Food Alliance warehouse hub in North Woolwich on August 12. Photo: Victoria Jones/PA London Mayor Sadiq Khan accused the British government of “deliberately provoking” strikes on the Tube, Overground and buses which he said could damage the capital’s recovery from the worst of the coronavirus pandemic. “I am concerned that the government is almost deliberately provoking industrial action in London,” Khan said in an interview with Sky News on Friday morning. Khan oversees Transport for London (TfL), which employs many of the London Underground and London workers who are striking on Friday. The Rail, Shipping and Transport (RMT) union is negotiating with TfL, but at the same time TfL is negotiating its long-term funding with the government. The government had to step in to rescue TfL, which normally depends heavily on fares revenue, after ticket sales fell at the start of the coronavirus pandemic. RMT leader Mick Lynch said workers were caught in a “deadlock” between the government and the mayor. In a separate interview with the Press Association, Khan said: I am disappointed by the strikes today. It is ordinary Londoners, commuters and businesses who will be affected today as we try to recover. If we were talking in January, the number of people using the tube was about 45% compared to pre-pandemic [levels]. Now it’s over 70%, I worry that next week when public transport is fully operational we will have fewer people using public transport which limits our ability to recover sooner. Updated at 10.41 BST RMT union leader Mick Lynch said he was “very sorry” people were facing disruption from the strikes, but added that workers needed to be protected from being “torn apart by an employer and by the government”. He said transport workers were “making a stand” and warned more industrial action was likely to follow, amid 10.1% annual consumer price index inflation causing real wages to fall for millions of workers. Lynch said (via the Press Association): So we are taking this stand on behalf of our members, but many other workers in Britain are suffering similar things and you will see a wave of this type of action. We cannot stand by and watch our circumstances be shredded. Otherwise it will just be a race to the bottom for all British workers. Leeds, who is general secretary of the Rail, Shipping and Transport (RMT) union, also said negotiations over a new pay deal in the new year could be a “really difficult” time. We don’t have a pay issue on the London Underground at the moment because we’re still in the long-term deal hanging on from the last pay deal, but we’ll have a pay deal starting in the new year where I’ll be looking for negotiations. It’s going to be a really tough time. So the issues involved on London Underground may become more serious and across TfL, because they have not received any government funding, it will be difficult.

RMT leader Mick Lynch: TfL workers at ‘dead end’ between government and mayor

Mick Lynch, general secretary of the Rail, Shipping and Transport Union (RMT) on the picket line outside London’s Euston railway station on Thursday 18 August. Photo: Stefan Rousseau/PA Union leader Mick Lynch criticized the way the capital is run as he said Transport for London workers were caught in a “deadlock” between the government and the city’s mayor. TfL has been forced to repeatedly negotiate short-term funding packages with the Westminster government to make up the shortfall in fares revenue since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. Lynch on Friday said Mayor Sadiq Khan was “offering our members’ terms and conditions hostage to get rail funding, and bus services as well”. Asked if he thought there would be an offer to workers on pay and conditions, Lynch said: We would hope so. They need to bring us around the table so we can talk about their problems, but right now there is a big deadlock. This impasse starts between the two authorities, which are the government and the mayor. It is very difficult for us to know what is going on. There is no meaningful discussion between us and the employer because the employer does not know how much money he will have. This is no way to run a major global city. We need to have a settlement that allows Londoners to get a decent transport system and the people working on that system to be confident about their future. Updated at 10.00 BST Jamie GriersonCommuter travels from Wimbledon, south west London ahead of the strikes on Wednesday. Photo: Amer Ghazzal/REX/Shutterstock Rail reforms at the heart of some strike action will be forced through legislation if workers do not agree to new deals, the transport secretary has suggested. Asked by Sky News if there are compulsory redundancies for rail workers, Grant Shapps repeated accusations that “union barons” were to blame for failing to give their members a deal. Shapps also claimed that antiquated working practices need to be updated, adding: “If we can’t implement these modernizations, we will have to impose these modernizations, but we would rather do it through these offers to their members.” . He gave an example of an offer made to RMT members for an 8% pay rise over two years, which was allegedly blocked by senior union members, including RMT general secretary Mick Lynch, without being put to its membership. You can read the full report here: More from Transport for London’s Nick Dent, this time in response to RMT claims that the transporter is holding secret negotiations with the government over job and pension cuts. Dent said TfL was working with ministers “throughout the pandemic to try to secure long-term funding for London”. TfL has lived hand to mouth since the start of the pandemic, when it lost billions of pounds in revenue as people stayed off the tube. The government has stepped in with repeated short-term bailouts, but not without cost: TfL has been forced by ministers to find savings and overhaul pensions in previous rounds of emergency funding. TfL is usually chaired by the Mayor of London, who since 2016 is Labour’s Sadiq Khan. Dent told Sky News: Of course we conduct these negotiations in confidence. They…

title: “London Strikes Sadiq Khan Accuses Government Of Deliberately Provoking Unions Business Live Business Klmat” ShowToc: true date: “2022-12-07” author: “Florence Mink”

London Mayor Sadiq Khan accused the British government of “deliberately provoking” strikes on the Tube, Overground and buses which he said could damage the capital’s recovery from the worst of the coronavirus pandemic. “I am concerned that the government is almost deliberately provoking industrial action in London,” Khan said in an interview with Sky News on Friday morning. Khan oversees Transport for London (TfL), which employs many of the London Underground and London workers who are striking on Friday. The Rail, Shipping and Transport (RMT) union is negotiating with TfL, but at the same time TfL is negotiating its long-term funding with the government. The government had to step in to rescue TfL, which normally depends heavily on fares revenue, after ticket sales fell at the start of the coronavirus pandemic. RMT leader Mick Lynch said workers were caught in a “deadlock” between the government and the mayor. In a separate interview with the Press Association, Khan said: I am disappointed by the strikes today. It is ordinary Londoners, commuters and businesses who will be affected today as we try to recover. If we were talking in January, the number of people using the tube was about 45% compared to pre-pandemic [levels]. Now it’s over 70%, I worry that next week when public transport is fully operational we will have fewer people using public transport which limits our ability to recover sooner. Updated at 10.41 BST Important events BETA filters Key facts (4)RMT (7)London (7)UK (5)TfL (5)Transport for London (5) To add to the disruption to services, Thameslink reported this morning that all lines through Royston were blocked… by a balloon. The balloon got caught in overhead wires, the rail operator said. Thameslink, run by Govia, is the UK’s largest rail franchise, operating lines such as those between Bedford and Brighton via London. ⚠️ We have been advised that a balloon has been caught on overhead power lines in Royston. Your journey will be delayed by up to 15 minutes. ℹ️ More to come. — Thameslink (@TLRailUK) August 19, 2022 The balloon has since been removed and the line reopened. Here was the offending item: 🎈 Sorry for the delay today, we hope to get you up and running as soon as possible. 🎫 Tickets will also be accepted on alternative Thameslink/Great North routes to reach your destination. pic.twitter.com/R8GNbiGbZS — Thameslink (@TLRailUK) August 19, 2022 Updated at 11.04 BST There is heavy traffic in some parts of London as people try to find their way around the strikes, according to BBC Radio London. Here are some of the worst queues this morning due to the #TubeStrike – the #A4 in the city from Hammersmith to Earl’s Court, all approaches to Holland Park roundabout, the #A501 Grays Inn Rd to King’s Cross and the Hwy approaching Tower Bridge pic.twitter.com/8rd4F49vNu — BBC Radio London Travel (@BBCTravelAlert) August 19, 2022

Sadiq Khan says the government may be “deliberately provoking” strikes in London

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, speaks to the media during a visit to the Newham Food Alliance warehouse hub in North Woolwich on August 12. Photo: Victoria Jones/PA London Mayor Sadiq Khan accused the British government of “deliberately provoking” strikes on the Tube, Overground and buses which he said could damage the capital’s recovery from the worst of the coronavirus pandemic. “I am concerned that the government is almost deliberately provoking industrial action in London,” Khan said in an interview with Sky News on Friday morning. Khan oversees Transport for London (TfL), which employs many of the London Underground and London workers who are striking on Friday. The Rail, Shipping and Transport (RMT) union is negotiating with TfL, but at the same time TfL is negotiating its long-term funding with the government. The government had to step in to rescue TfL, which normally depends heavily on fares revenue, after ticket sales fell at the start of the coronavirus pandemic. RMT leader Mick Lynch said workers were caught in a “deadlock” between the government and the mayor. In a separate interview with the Press Association, Khan said: I am disappointed by the strikes today. It is ordinary Londoners, commuters and businesses who will be affected today as we try to recover. If we were talking in January, the number of people using the tube was about 45% compared to pre-pandemic [levels]. Now it’s over 70%, I worry that next week when public transport is fully operational we will have fewer people using public transport which limits our ability to recover sooner. Updated at 10.41 BST RMT union leader Mick Lynch said he was “very sorry” people were facing disruption from the strikes, but added that workers needed to be protected from being “torn apart by an employer and by the government”. He said transport workers were “making a stand” and warned more industrial action was likely to follow, amid 10.1% annual consumer price index inflation causing real wages to fall for millions of workers. Lynch said (via the Press Association): So we are taking this stand on behalf of our members, but many other workers in Britain are suffering similar things and you will see a wave of this type of action. We cannot stand by and watch our circumstances be shredded. Otherwise it will just be a race to the bottom for all British workers. Leeds, who is general secretary of the Rail, Shipping and Transport (RMT) union, also said negotiations over a new pay deal in the new year could be a “really difficult” time. We don’t have a pay issue on the London Underground at the moment because we’re still in the long-term deal hanging on from the last pay deal, but we’ll have a pay deal starting in the new year where I’ll be looking for negotiations. It’s going to be a really tough time. So the issues involved on London Underground may become more serious and across TfL, because they have not received any government funding, it will be difficult.

RMT leader Mick Lynch: TfL workers at ‘dead end’ between government and mayor

Mick Lynch, general secretary of the Rail, Shipping and Transport Union (RMT) on the picket line outside London’s Euston railway station on Thursday 18 August. Photo: Stefan Rousseau/PA Union leader Mick Lynch criticized the way the capital is run as he said Transport for London workers were caught in a “deadlock” between the government and the city’s mayor. TfL has been forced to repeatedly negotiate short-term funding packages with the Westminster government to make up the shortfall in fares revenue since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. Lynch on Friday said Mayor Sadiq Khan was “offering our members’ terms and conditions hostage to get rail funding, and bus services as well”. Asked if he thought there would be an offer to workers on pay and conditions, Lynch said: We would hope so. They need to bring us around the table so we can talk about their problems, but right now there is a big deadlock. This impasse starts between the two authorities, which are the government and the mayor. It is very difficult for us to know what is going on. There is no meaningful discussion between us and the employer because the employer does not know how much money he will have. This is no way to run a major global city. We need to have a settlement that allows Londoners to get a decent transport system and the people working on that system to be confident about their future. Updated at 10.00 BST Jamie GriersonCommuter travels from Wimbledon, south west London ahead of the strikes on Wednesday. Photo: Amer Ghazzal/REX/Shutterstock Rail reforms at the heart of some strike action will be forced through legislation if workers do not agree to new deals, the transport secretary has suggested. Asked by Sky News if there are compulsory redundancies for rail workers, Grant Shapps repeated accusations that “union barons” were to blame for failing to give their members a deal. Shapps also claimed that antiquated working practices need to be updated, adding: “If we can’t implement these modernizations, we will have to impose these modernizations, but we would rather do it through these offers to their members.” . He gave an example of an offer made to RMT members for an 8% pay rise over two years, which was allegedly blocked by senior union members, including RMT general secretary Mick Lynch, without being put to its membership. You can read the full report here: More from Transport for London’s Nick Dent, this time in response to RMT claims that the transporter is holding secret negotiations with the government over job and pension cuts. Dent said TfL was working with ministers “throughout the pandemic to try to secure long-term funding for London”. TfL has lived hand to mouth since the start of the pandemic, when it lost billions of pounds in revenue as people stayed off the tube. The government has stepped in with repeated short-term bailouts, but not without cost: TfL has been forced by ministers to find savings and overhaul pensions in previous rounds of emergency funding. TfL is usually chaired by the Mayor of London, who since 2016 is Labour’s Sadiq Khan. Dent told Sky News: Of course we conduct these negotiations in confidence. They…

title: “London Strikes Sadiq Khan Accuses Government Of Deliberately Provoking Unions Business Live Business Klmat” ShowToc: true date: “2022-11-17” author: “Susan Green”

London Mayor Sadiq Khan accused the British government of “deliberately provoking” strikes on the Tube, Overground and buses which he said could damage the capital’s recovery from the worst of the coronavirus pandemic. “I am concerned that the government is almost deliberately provoking industrial action in London,” Khan said in an interview with Sky News on Friday morning. Khan oversees Transport for London (TfL), which employs many of the London Underground and London workers who are striking on Friday. The Rail, Shipping and Transport (RMT) union is negotiating with TfL, but at the same time TfL is negotiating its long-term funding with the government. The government had to step in to rescue TfL, which normally depends heavily on fares revenue, after ticket sales fell at the start of the coronavirus pandemic. RMT leader Mick Lynch said workers were caught in a “deadlock” between the government and the mayor. In a separate interview with the Press Association, Khan said: I am disappointed by the strikes today. It is ordinary Londoners, commuters and businesses who will be affected today as we try to recover. If we were talking in January, the number of people using the tube was about 45% compared to pre-pandemic [levels]. Now it’s over 70%, I worry that next week when public transport is fully operational we will have fewer people using public transport which limits our ability to recover sooner. Updated at 10.41 BST Important events BETA filters Key facts (4)RMT (7)London (7)UK (5)TfL (5)Transport for London (5) To add to the disruption to services, Thameslink reported this morning that all lines through Royston were blocked… by a balloon. The balloon got caught in overhead wires, the rail operator said. Thameslink, run by Govia, is the UK’s largest rail franchise, operating lines such as those between Bedford and Brighton via London. ⚠️ We have been advised that a balloon has been caught on overhead power lines in Royston. Your journey will be delayed by up to 15 minutes. ℹ️ More to come. — Thameslink (@TLRailUK) August 19, 2022 The balloon has since been removed and the line reopened. Here was the offending item: 🎈 Sorry for the delay today, we hope to get you up and running as soon as possible. 🎫 Tickets will also be accepted on alternative Thameslink/Great North routes to reach your destination. pic.twitter.com/R8GNbiGbZS — Thameslink (@TLRailUK) August 19, 2022 Updated at 11.04 BST There is heavy traffic in some parts of London as people try to find their way around the strikes, according to BBC Radio London. Here are some of the worst queues this morning due to the #TubeStrike – the #A4 in the city from Hammersmith to Earl’s Court, all approaches to Holland Park roundabout, the #A501 Grays Inn Rd to King’s Cross and the Hwy approaching Tower Bridge pic.twitter.com/8rd4F49vNu — BBC Radio London Travel (@BBCTravelAlert) August 19, 2022

Sadiq Khan says the government may be “deliberately provoking” strikes in London

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, speaks to the media during a visit to the Newham Food Alliance warehouse hub in North Woolwich on August 12. Photo: Victoria Jones/PA London Mayor Sadiq Khan accused the British government of “deliberately provoking” strikes on the Tube, Overground and buses which he said could damage the capital’s recovery from the worst of the coronavirus pandemic. “I am concerned that the government is almost deliberately provoking industrial action in London,” Khan said in an interview with Sky News on Friday morning. Khan oversees Transport for London (TfL), which employs many of the London Underground and London workers who are striking on Friday. The Rail, Shipping and Transport (RMT) union is negotiating with TfL, but at the same time TfL is negotiating its long-term funding with the government. The government had to step in to rescue TfL, which normally depends heavily on fares revenue, after ticket sales fell at the start of the coronavirus pandemic. RMT leader Mick Lynch said workers were caught in a “deadlock” between the government and the mayor. In a separate interview with the Press Association, Khan said: I am disappointed by the strikes today. It is ordinary Londoners, commuters and businesses who will be affected today as we try to recover. If we were talking in January, the number of people using the tube was about 45% compared to pre-pandemic [levels]. Now it’s over 70%, I worry that next week when public transport is fully operational we will have fewer people using public transport which limits our ability to recover sooner. Updated at 10.41 BST RMT union leader Mick Lynch said he was “very sorry” people were facing disruption from the strikes, but added that workers needed to be protected from being “torn apart by an employer and by the government”. He said transport workers were “making a stand” and warned more industrial action was likely to follow, amid 10.1% annual consumer price index inflation causing real wages to fall for millions of workers. Lynch said (via the Press Association): So we are taking this stand on behalf of our members, but many other workers in Britain are suffering similar things and you will see a wave of this type of action. We cannot stand by and watch our circumstances be shredded. Otherwise it will just be a race to the bottom for all British workers. Leeds, who is general secretary of the Rail, Shipping and Transport (RMT) union, also said negotiations over a new pay deal in the new year could be a “really difficult” time. We don’t have a pay issue on the London Underground at the moment because we’re still in the long-term deal hanging on from the last pay deal, but we’ll have a pay deal starting in the new year where I’ll be looking for negotiations. It’s going to be a really tough time. So the issues involved on London Underground may become more serious and across TfL, because they have not received any government funding, it will be difficult.

RMT leader Mick Lynch: TfL workers at ‘dead end’ between government and mayor

Mick Lynch, general secretary of the Rail, Shipping and Transport Union (RMT) on the picket line outside London’s Euston railway station on Thursday 18 August. Photo: Stefan Rousseau/PA Union leader Mick Lynch criticized the way the capital is run as he said Transport for London workers were caught in a “deadlock” between the government and the city’s mayor. TfL has been forced to repeatedly negotiate short-term funding packages with the Westminster government to make up the shortfall in fares revenue since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. Lynch on Friday said Mayor Sadiq Khan was “offering our members’ terms and conditions hostage to get rail funding, and bus services as well”. Asked if he thought there would be an offer to workers on pay and conditions, Lynch said: We would hope so. They need to bring us around the table so we can talk about their problems, but right now there is a big deadlock. This impasse starts between the two authorities, which are the government and the mayor. It is very difficult for us to know what is going on. There is no meaningful discussion between us and the employer because the employer does not know how much money he will have. This is no way to run a major global city. We need to have a settlement that allows Londoners to get a decent transport system and the people working on that system to be confident about their future. Updated at 10.00 BST Jamie GriersonCommuter travels from Wimbledon, south west London ahead of the strikes on Wednesday. Photo: Amer Ghazzal/REX/Shutterstock Rail reforms at the heart of some strike action will be forced through legislation if workers do not agree to new deals, the transport secretary has suggested. Asked by Sky News if there are compulsory redundancies for rail workers, Grant Shapps repeated accusations that “union barons” were to blame for failing to give their members a deal. Shapps also claimed that antiquated working practices need to be updated, adding: “If we can’t implement these modernizations, we will have to impose these modernizations, but we would rather do it through these offers to their members.” . He gave an example of an offer made to RMT members for an 8% pay rise over two years, which was allegedly blocked by senior union members, including RMT general secretary Mick Lynch, without being put to its membership. You can read the full report here: More from Transport for London’s Nick Dent, this time in response to RMT claims that the transporter is holding secret negotiations with the government over job and pension cuts. Dent said TfL was working with ministers “throughout the pandemic to try to secure long-term funding for London”. TfL has lived hand to mouth since the start of the pandemic, when it lost billions of pounds in revenue as people stayed off the tube. The government has stepped in with repeated short-term bailouts, but not without cost: TfL has been forced by ministers to find savings and overhaul pensions in previous rounds of emergency funding. TfL is usually chaired by the Mayor of London, who since 2016 is Labour’s Sadiq Khan. Dent told Sky News: Of course we conduct these negotiations in confidence. They…

title: “London Strikes Sadiq Khan Accuses Government Of Deliberately Provoking Unions Business Live Business Klmat” ShowToc: true date: “2022-11-15” author: “Teresa Gantz”

London Mayor Sadiq Khan accused the British government of “deliberately provoking” strikes on the Tube, Overground and buses which he said could damage the capital’s recovery from the worst of the coronavirus pandemic. “I am concerned that the government is almost deliberately provoking industrial action in London,” Khan said in an interview with Sky News on Friday morning. Khan oversees Transport for London (TfL), which employs many of the London Underground and London workers who are striking on Friday. The Rail, Shipping and Transport (RMT) union is negotiating with TfL, but at the same time TfL is negotiating its long-term funding with the government. The government had to step in to rescue TfL, which normally depends heavily on fares revenue, after ticket sales fell at the start of the coronavirus pandemic. RMT leader Mick Lynch said workers were caught in a “deadlock” between the government and the mayor. In a separate interview with the Press Association, Khan said: I am disappointed by the strikes today. It is ordinary Londoners, commuters and businesses who will be affected today as we try to recover. If we were talking in January, the number of people using the tube was about 45% compared to pre-pandemic [levels]. Now it’s over 70%, I worry that next week when public transport is fully operational we will have fewer people using public transport which limits our ability to recover sooner. Updated at 10.41 BST Important events BETA filters Key facts (4)RMT (7)London (7)UK (5)TfL (5)Transport for London (5) To add to the disruption to services, Thameslink reported this morning that all lines through Royston were blocked… by a balloon. The balloon got caught in overhead wires, the rail operator said. Thameslink, run by Govia, is the UK’s largest rail franchise, operating lines such as those between Bedford and Brighton via London. ⚠️ We have been advised that a balloon has been caught on overhead power lines in Royston. Your journey will be delayed by up to 15 minutes. ℹ️ More to come. — Thameslink (@TLRailUK) August 19, 2022 The balloon has since been removed and the line reopened. Here was the offending item: 🎈 Sorry for the delay today, we hope to get you up and running as soon as possible. 🎫 Tickets will also be accepted on alternative Thameslink/Great North routes to reach your destination. pic.twitter.com/R8GNbiGbZS — Thameslink (@TLRailUK) August 19, 2022 Updated at 11.04 BST There is heavy traffic in some parts of London as people try to find their way around the strikes, according to BBC Radio London. Here are some of the worst queues this morning due to the #TubeStrike – the #A4 in the city from Hammersmith to Earl’s Court, all approaches to Holland Park roundabout, the #A501 Grays Inn Rd to King’s Cross and the Hwy approaching Tower Bridge pic.twitter.com/8rd4F49vNu — BBC Radio London Travel (@BBCTravelAlert) August 19, 2022

Sadiq Khan says the government may be “deliberately provoking” strikes in London

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, speaks to the media during a visit to the Newham Food Alliance warehouse hub in North Woolwich on August 12. Photo: Victoria Jones/PA London Mayor Sadiq Khan accused the British government of “deliberately provoking” strikes on the Tube, Overground and buses which he said could damage the capital’s recovery from the worst of the coronavirus pandemic. “I am concerned that the government is almost deliberately provoking industrial action in London,” Khan said in an interview with Sky News on Friday morning. Khan oversees Transport for London (TfL), which employs many of the London Underground and London workers who are striking on Friday. The Rail, Shipping and Transport (RMT) union is negotiating with TfL, but at the same time TfL is negotiating its long-term funding with the government. The government had to step in to rescue TfL, which normally depends heavily on fares revenue, after ticket sales fell at the start of the coronavirus pandemic. RMT leader Mick Lynch said workers were caught in a “deadlock” between the government and the mayor. In a separate interview with the Press Association, Khan said: I am disappointed by the strikes today. It is ordinary Londoners, commuters and businesses who will be affected today as we try to recover. If we were talking in January, the number of people using the tube was about 45% compared to pre-pandemic [levels]. Now it’s over 70%, I worry that next week when public transport is fully operational we will have fewer people using public transport which limits our ability to recover sooner. Updated at 10.41 BST RMT union leader Mick Lynch said he was “very sorry” people were facing disruption from the strikes, but added that workers needed to be protected from being “torn apart by an employer and by the government”. He said transport workers were “making a stand” and warned more industrial action was likely to follow, amid 10.1% annual consumer price index inflation causing real wages to fall for millions of workers. Lynch said (via the Press Association): So we are taking this stand on behalf of our members, but many other workers in Britain are suffering similar things and you will see a wave of this type of action. We cannot stand by and watch our circumstances be shredded. Otherwise it will just be a race to the bottom for all British workers. Leeds, who is general secretary of the Rail, Shipping and Transport (RMT) union, also said negotiations over a new pay deal in the new year could be a “really difficult” time. We don’t have a pay issue on the London Underground at the moment because we’re still in the long-term deal hanging on from the last pay deal, but we’ll have a pay deal starting in the new year where I’ll be looking for negotiations. It’s going to be a really tough time. So the issues involved on London Underground may become more serious and across TfL, because they have not received any government funding, it will be difficult.

RMT leader Mick Lynch: TfL workers at ‘dead end’ between government and mayor

Mick Lynch, general secretary of the Rail, Shipping and Transport Union (RMT) on the picket line outside London’s Euston railway station on Thursday 18 August. Photo: Stefan Rousseau/PA Union leader Mick Lynch criticized the way the capital is run as he said Transport for London workers were caught in a “deadlock” between the government and the city’s mayor. TfL has been forced to repeatedly negotiate short-term funding packages with the Westminster government to make up the shortfall in fares revenue since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. Lynch on Friday said Mayor Sadiq Khan was “offering our members’ terms and conditions hostage to get rail funding, and bus services as well”. Asked if he thought there would be an offer to workers on pay and conditions, Lynch said: We would hope so. They need to bring us around the table so we can talk about their problems, but right now there is a big deadlock. This impasse starts between the two authorities, which are the government and the mayor. It is very difficult for us to know what is going on. There is no meaningful discussion between us and the employer because the employer does not know how much money he will have. This is no way to run a major global city. We need to have a settlement that allows Londoners to get a decent transport system and the people working on that system to be confident about their future. Updated at 10.00 BST Jamie GriersonCommuter travels from Wimbledon, south west London ahead of the strikes on Wednesday. Photo: Amer Ghazzal/REX/Shutterstock Rail reforms at the heart of some strike action will be forced through legislation if workers do not agree to new deals, the transport secretary has suggested. Asked by Sky News if there are compulsory redundancies for rail workers, Grant Shapps repeated accusations that “union barons” were to blame for failing to give their members a deal. Shapps also claimed that antiquated working practices need to be updated, adding: “If we can’t implement these modernizations, we will have to impose these modernizations, but we would rather do it through these offers to their members.” . He gave an example of an offer made to RMT members for an 8% pay rise over two years, which was allegedly blocked by senior union members, including RMT general secretary Mick Lynch, without being put to its membership. You can read the full report here: More from Transport for London’s Nick Dent, this time in response to RMT claims that the transporter is holding secret negotiations with the government over job and pension cuts. Dent said TfL was working with ministers “throughout the pandemic to try to secure long-term funding for London”. TfL has lived hand to mouth since the start of the pandemic, when it lost billions of pounds in revenue as people stayed off the tube. The government has stepped in with repeated short-term bailouts, but not without cost: TfL has been forced by ministers to find savings and overhaul pensions in previous rounds of emergency funding. TfL is usually chaired by the Mayor of London, who since 2016 is Labour’s Sadiq Khan. Dent told Sky News: Of course we conduct these negotiations in confidence. They…