UK Rail Strikes: PM warns of 'continued disruption'

About 40,000 RMT members of Network Rail and 13 other train operators went on strike this morning, which will also take place on Thursday and Saturday.

London Underground workers are also on strike today

News agencies

21/06/2022

Tuesday, 21 June 2022, 13:28 Updated: 13:33

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In the video: UK railway workers strike (Walla system)

Passengers must be prepared for the "unnecessary disruptions" caused by the train strike, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said today (Tuesday).

Johnson made the remarks, according to Sky News, at the start of a cabinet meeting on the first day of widespread train strikes across the UK - the largest in 30 years - that left millions of passengers without transport.

The union of RMT trains is in conflict with rail managers over wages, jobs and conditions, following the corona plague that changed the behavior patterns of passengers.

Johnson said train network reform was needed, hinting that passengers should prepare for further disruptions due to union protests.

"Union leaders need to sit down with Network Rail and the railway companies and move forward. We need, unfortunately, all of us, the whole country, to prepare for the future. These reforms are in the interest of the traveling public and will help us reduce fares across the country."

He said the strikes were causing "significant" disruptions and inconvenience across the country, and that they were "wrong and unnecessary".

"People have a hard time getting to work, to meetings, to exams," he added.

About 40,000 RMT members of Network Rail and 13 other train operators went on strike this morning, which will also take place on Thursday and Saturday this week.

Stations empty of people

The union is asking for a 7% wage increase - less than the 9% inflation but more than the employers' 2% offer.

He accuses the government of encouraging such conflicts by cutting public subsidies worth £ 1 billion.

RMT secretary general Mick Lynch told Sky News that "my message to the traveling public is that we are very sorry for the disruptions caused. We do not want this to happen but we want to To reach an agreement. "

Half of the UK railway lines are not operating, and the operating hours of the operating lines have been reduced.

London Underground workers are also on strike today.

This morning stations usually busy in London were left empty of people.

High school students who are due to take the matriculation exams today have had to find alternative ways to get to schools.

However, the roads were busier than usual due to the move to private cars.

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