UK holiday traffic was severely impacted as thousands of Network Rail workers walked out on Saturday night to demand higher wages and better working conditions. As a result, train services were largely disrupted in the afternoon. The wage dispute fronts have strengthened. The strike called by the RMT union is not expected to end until December 27.
In addition, border authorities have been on strike at several airports since Friday, including major London airports Heathrow and Gatwick. In some cases, soldiers took over passports. However, long queues at the entrance have been warned. There are no official passport controls when leaving the UK. The strike should last until New Year’s Eve.
Portal/Toby Melville Strikes caused Christmas traffic chaos
Royal Mail staff have also been out of work for weeks, which is why dozens of people have not received any Christmas mail or packages. The British health service NHS has already announced new strikes for next year, the union described previous wage increases as “pathetic” and now in January, for example, ambulances will stop working for two days.
Phone calls as a thank you to public service
In the face of numerous strikes, Sunak decided not to give the traditional Christmas speech. Instead, he surprised several government officials with personal connections, Downing Street said. Sunak tweeted on Saturday: “To all Brits working on Christmas – thank you. Whether you are in Mogadishu or Milton Keynes I am personally grateful for your commitment.”
To all Brits who work on Christmas – thank you.
Whether you are in Mogadishu or Milton Keynes, I am personally grateful for your sacrifice.
— Rishi Sunak (@RishiSunak) December 24, 2022
According to the government, Sunak called diplomats in Somalia, Pakistan and Ukraine, as well as the head of a state-sponsored charity in London. He also named the icebreaker’s crew “HMS Protector”, which is currently on duty in the South Sandwich Islands, near Antarctica, and supplies the scientists there, among other things.
According to commentators, Sunak wanted to show the great value he attaches to public service. Unions accuse the government of refusing reasonable wage increases.
“Do you work in trade?”
Sunak is again faced with criticism on Christmas Eve. The trigger is an appearance by the Prime Minister in a soup kitchen for the homeless. There he asked a man if he worked in trade, to which he replied that he was homeless. But he is interested in the economy, especially the financial sector.
Sunak then spoke about his experience in the financial sector and asked if the man “would like to enter this sector”. The man replied, “I wouldn’t mind, but I don’t know, I want to spend Christmas first.” Sunak wanted to highlight in the presentation that the government has pledged £2 billion to tackle the homeless and homeless over three years.
United Kingdom: Rail workers are on strike
In Britain, after emergency services and the post office, railway workers are on strike on Saturday. They demand higher wages and better working conditions.
Deputy Labor Leader Angela Rayner called the switch “unbearable” and Labor MP Stella Creasy said: “Looking at this, I am concerned that the Prime Minister thinks homeless means ‘at the moment you don’t have a large amount of property’. “
Opposition: Lost contact with ordinary people
Labor MP Bill Esterson wrote that this showed that Sunak had lost touch with the common people. This is one of the accusations that Sunak was faced with even before taking office as British Prime Minister – he is considered the richest MP in the British House of Commons. Sunak has been in charge since October. The 42-year-old wanted to spend his first Christmas as Prime Minister in his constituency of Richmond, in the North Yorkshire county of northern England.