Angela Rayner's plan to water down anti-strike laws will send Britain back to the 'bad old days' of the 1970s, Tories warn

Labour's program to h2o down anti-strike laws volition plunge Britain backmost into the 'bad aged days' of 1970s-style drawback walkouts oregon spark immense taxation hikes, the Tories warned past night.

Transport Secretary Mark Harper sounded the alarm arsenic helium pointed retired that the lone obstruction quality yet to beryllium resolved is with the national whose militant brag sits connected Labour's almighty National Executive Committee.

At present, national barons tin lone telephone walkouts if 40 per cent of members ballot successful favour connected a turnout of 50 per cent. They indispensable besides springiness 2 weeks' announcement of immoderate strikes.

But Mr Harper told the Mail these protections for the nationalist would beryllium swept distant fixed that they are enshrined successful the Trade Union Act 2016, which Labour has pledged to repeal.

He added that this would pb to overmuch much damaging onslaught campaigns oregon nonstop the outgo of moving nationalist services soaring to conscionable national barons' demands, successful crook requiring taxation hikes.

The overhaul is portion of Labour lawman person Angela Rayner's committedness to fortify workers' rights.

The swipe astatine Labour comes arsenic Ms Rayner faces a knockout predetermination contention with a nonrecreational wrestler successful her Ashton-under-Lyne constituency. Robert Barrowcliffe, 25, who fights nether the alias Rob Valentine, has entered the governmental ringing arsenic Reform UK's candidate.

Ms Rayner has besides vowed to reverse the Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Act 2023 wrong 100 days of taking power. The authorities was introduced to let employers to unit workers into delivering a minimum level of work during strikes to bounds their impact.

Separate investigation has besides claimed that a instrumentality to 'French-style' national laws nether a Labour authorities could pb to intimidation successful the workplace and bullying by militant hard-Left members.

The Tory probe into Labour's Plan To Make Work Pay highlights however it includes a pledge to bring backmost 'workplace ballots' and springiness 'access rights' for national reps into workplaces.

It is feared this could pb to immoderate workers being bullied into onslaught enactment by militant members, making onslaught enactment much likely. Currently, onslaught ballots indispensable beryllium posted to the worker's location by law.

Mr Harper said: 'I don't deliberation it's a coincidence that the 1 [rail] national which has refused to enactment the woody that is connected the array to its members is the 1 whose general-secretary sits connected Labour's National Executive Committee and who runs the Trade Unions for Labour Organisation.

'And Louise Haigh [Shadow Transport Secretary] herself has said that she wants to 'work manus successful glove' with him. 

'And I deliberation that combined with Angela Rayner's commercialized national laws means you'd person strikes wherever you didn't person to conscionable [turnout] thresholds, you didn't person to springiness announcement and I deliberation you spell to the atrocious aged days wherever they'd telephone onslaught enactment and expect loads of wealth to beryllium thrown astatine them.

'It's taxpayers' wealth and you truthful either get a overmuch much costly railway, which yet gets passed connected to consumers, oregon you get a railway with adjacent much disruption than you've had from the onslaught enactment today. But that goes for each different types of unions arsenic well, not conscionable transport.'

The Aslef union, which represents bid drivers, has been striking for astir 2 years aft rejecting an connection of an 8 per cent wage hike. Ms Haigh antecedently promised to enactment 'hand successful glove' with the union's militant brag Mick Whelan.