A former RMT assistant General Secretary has hit out at the Prime Minister as being a “pound shop Margaret Thatcher” over her attempt to save the UK economy.
Members of four trade unions are striking for 24 hours, causing the worst rail disruption of the year so far, with some areas of the country having no services all day.
Rail passengers have been advised only to travel if necessary on Saturday because of the action by members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT), Aslef, Unite and the Transport Salaried Staffs’ Association (TSSA).
The timing coincides with the London Marathon on Sunday, leaving participants struggling to reach the capital for the run.
Members of four trade unions are striking for 24 hours, causing the worst rail disruption of the year so far, with some areas of the country having no services all day
Ian Vogler
Steve Hedley joined Stephen Dixon and Anne Diamond on GB News and when asked by Anne if Liz Truss is “trying to do a Margaret Thatcher and smash the unions”, Hedley replied: “Life is political, people may think that they aren’t political, but politics cares about them even if they don’t care about politics.
“The minute you turn on your light in the morning, it’s a decision. Is it a private company that’s supplying that light or is it a public company that’s going to keep prices down?
“Truss, I think is some sort of throwback, she’s not Margaret Thatcher, she’s a pound shop Margaret Thatcher. She’s a wannabe Margaret Thatcher.”
He continued: “I didn’t like the woman, I didn’t like her policies, I thought she was very divisive and attacked working class people.
“What we have in Truss, is a complete amateur in charge. The IMF are intervening, the Bank of England are intervening, because [Kwasi] Kwarteng and Truss have driven the economy over a cliff edge. That’s what’s happening. Instead of going ‘yeah hands up, we’ve done something wrong here’, they’re blaming Putin.
“Unless Putin wrote the budget, I really don’t see that as a feasible excuse.”
A former RMT assistant General Secretary has hit out at the Prime Minister as being a “pound shop Margaret Thatcher” over her attempt to save the UK economy.
GB News
Railway industry bosses stand to gain up to £61,000 a year from the Chancellor’s tax cuts, more than most RMT members will earn in a year and in many cases twice as much, the union said.
Those higher up are receiving salaries of up to £2.5 million a year while workers struggle with the cost-of-living crisis and are denied pay rises, Mr Lynch said on Saturday.
Another strike by Aslef will be held on Wednesday while RMT members will walk out again on October 8, and again on October 10 in Scotland.
A reduced timetable has been published, showing that just 11% of rail services will run on Saturday, with some areas having no trains.
Trains will start later in the morning and finish earlier in the evening, and there will be no trains at all across large parts of the network.
Delegates travelling to the Conservative Party conference this weekend will be among those affected.
Those who must travel – including those looking to participate in or watch the London Marathon – have been advised to plan ahead and check when their last train will leave.
Passengers have also been warned there is likely to be some disruption in the early morning of Sunday October 2 as workers return.
