London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Sunday, Oct 19, 2025

Shapps demands union put pay offer to a vote as latest walkout cripples UK

Shapps demands union put pay offer to a vote as latest walkout cripples UK

Despite the pay offer, the RMT’s Mick Lynch has claimed more strikes later this year are ‘very likely’

Grant Shapps has urged the head of the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union to put Network Rail’s pay offer to workers for a vote after Saturday’s strikes caused chaos across the country.

In a letter to RMT general secretary Mick Lynch on Saturday afternoon, the Transport Secretary said the railway operator’s proposal of an 8 per cent pay rise over two years is “fair” and members should have the opportunity to resolve the dispute.

He also called on the union to accept proposed reforms to modernise the railway sector after Saturday’s walkouts left just 20 per cent of the rail network running.


The action is the latest in a series of walkouts over the last few months amid a stalemate between unions and train operators, which has caused travel chaos across the UK.

Mr Lynch has rejected suggestions that rail workers would agree to the offer on the table if the union put it to a vote.

But Mr Shapps made a fresh appeal on Saturday before criticising the union for how the industrial action is affecting the public.

In his letter shared on Twitter, the Transport Secretary wrote: “Network Rail has tabled a fair, legitimate pay offer (8% over two years).

“It is only right that you now put that offer to your members and call off the strikes whilst you do so.”

Mr Shapps cited some TSSA members recently voting in favour of the deal before accusing other unions of pressurising other TSSA members into cancelling another vote.

“It is in no one’s interest to take away members’ opportunity to resolve disputes,” he said.

Mr Shapps described the union action as a “kick in the teeth” to workers who cannot travel to their own jobs.

He wrote: “Whilst the rise of home working has limited your ability to bring the country to a standstill, your action is disproportionately impacting those who have no option but to travel to work.

“Consider the hospital porter, cleaner and everyone else who needs to physically be at their place of work. Your action is often harming the least well paid the most.”

The Transport Secretary said employers have a pay rise on the table for RMT members but it will not be put forward until the union agrees to reforms that “will bring the railways off taxpayer-funded life support”.

He said: “The longer the RMT continue to call further strikes whilst refusing to agree to these reforms and refusing to even put offers to its members, the more long-lasting damage is being done to the very sector from which your members draw their livelihoods, and on which key workers rely.”

The two sides are as far apart as ever in resolving the row despite months of talks.

Mr Lynch rejected Mr Shapps’ suggestion that RMT members would agree to the current offer if it was put to a vote, as he spoke to broadcasters on Saturday morning.

Asked on BBC Breakfast whether he had evidence of this, Mr Lynch said: “Absolutely, I did a meeting on Wednesday evening, the night before the strike of 14,000 RMT members, in an online rally and our members are out today demonstrating.

“I speak to thousands of our members every week, we consult at least 600 Network Rail reps on a weekly basis and we know exactly what the mood of our members is.”

Mr Lynch also claimed that members of the smaller TSSA union, who voted to accept a pay deal, “have been bribed to break this strike”.

He said: “Our members are not going to be bribed, the offer is puny and they’re not ready to accept it.”

Mr Lynch claimed public support for the dispute is “entrenching”.

“There are campaigns and rallies being launched right across the country in support of these type of activities,” he said.

“I think the British public are fed up of being ripped off by this Government and by corporate Britain, which have seen companies like BP and British Gas making massive profits while people are struggling to make a living.

“The companies are being supported in this by the Government and we’re determined to get a square deal for our people and that’s exactly what we’ll achieve and the public seems to be right behind us in that campaign.”

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Windows’ Own ‘Siri’ Has Arrived: You Can Now Talk to Your Computer
Thailand and Singapore Investigate Cambodian-Based Prince Group as U.S. and U.K. Sanctions Unfold
‘No Kings’ Protests Inflate Numbers — But History Shows Nations Collapse Without Strong Executive Power
Chinese Tech Giants Halt Stablecoin Launches After Beijing’s Regulatory Intervention
Manhattan Jury Holds BNP Paribas Liable for Enabling Sudanese Government Abuses
Trump Orders Immediate Release of Former Congressman George Santos After Commuting Prison Sentence
S&P Downgrades France’s Credit Rating, Citing Soaring Debt and Political Instability
Ofcom Rules BBC’s Gaza Documentary ‘Materially Misleading’ Over Narrator’s Hamas Ties
Diane Keaton’s Cause of Death Revealed as Pneumonia, Family Confirms
Former Lostprophets Frontman Ian Watkins Stabbed to Death in British Prison
"The Tsunami Is Coming, and It’s Massive": The World’s Richest Man Unveils a New AI Vision
Outsider, Heroine, Trailblazer: Diane Keaton Was Always a Little Strange — and Forever One of a Kind
Dramatic Development in the Death of 'Mango' Founder: Billionaire's Son Suspected of Murder
Two Years of Darkness: The Harrowing Testimonies of Israeli Hostages Emerging From Gaza Captivity
EU Moves to Use Frozen Russian Assets to Buy U.S. Weapons for Ukraine
Europe Emerges as the Biggest Casualty in U.S.-China Rare Earth Rivalry
HSBC Confronts Strategic Crossroads as NAB Seeks Only Retail Arm in Australia Exit
U.S. Chamber Sues Trump Over $100,000 H-1B Visa Fee
Shenzhen Expo Spotlights China’s Quantum Step in Semiconductor Self-Reliance
China Accelerates to the Forefront in Global Nuclear Fusion Race
Yachts, Private Jets, and a Picasso Painting: Exposed as 'One of the Largest Frauds in History'
Australia’s Wedgetail Spies Aid NATO Response as Russian MiGs Breach Estonian Airspace
McGowan Urges Chalmers to Cut Spending Over Tax Hike to Close $20 Billion Budget Gap
Victoria Orders Review of Transgender Prison Placement Amid Safety Concerns for Female Inmates
U.S. Treasury Mobilises New $20 Billion Debt Facility to Stabilise Argentina
French Business Leaders Decry Budget as Macron’s Pro-Enterprise Promise Undermined
Trump Claims Modi Pledged India Would End Russian Oil Imports Amid U.S. Tariff Pressure
Surging AI Startup Valuations Fuel Bubble Concerns Among Top Investors
Australian Punter Archie Wilson Tears Up During Nebraska Press Conference, Sparking Conversation on Male Vulnerability
Australia Confirms U.S. Access to Upgraded Submarine Shipyard Under AUKUS Deal
“Firepower” Promised for Ukraine as NATO Ministers Meet — But U.S. Tomahawks Remain Undecided
Brands Confront New Dilemma as Extremists Adopt Fashion Labels
The Sydney Sweeney and Jeans Storm: “The Outcome Surpassed Our Wildest Dreams”
Erika Kirk Delivers Moving Tribute at White House as Trump Awards Charlie Presidential Medal of Freedom
British Food Influencer ‘Big John’ Detained in Australia After Visa Dispute
ScamBodia: The Chinese Fraud Empire Shielded by Cambodia’s Ruling Elite
French PM Suspends Macron’s Pension Reform Until After 2027 in Bid to Stabilize Government
Orange, Bouygues and Free Make €17 Billion Bid for Drahi’s Altice France Telecom Assets
Dutch Government Seizes Chipmaker After U.S. Presses for Removal of Chinese CEO
Bessent Accuses China of Dragging Down Global Economy Amid New Trade Curbs
U.S. Revokes Visas of Foreign Nationals Who ‘Celebrated’ Charlie Kirk’s Assassination
AI and Cybersecurity at Forefront as GITEX Global 2025 Kicks Off in Dubai
DJI Loses Appeal to Remove Pentagon’s ‘Chinese Military Company’ Label
EU Deploys New Biometric Entry/Exit System: What Non-EU Travelers Must Know
Australian Prime Minister’s Private Number Exposed Through AI Contact Scraper
Ex-Microsoft Engineer Confirms Famous Windows XP Key Was Leaked Corporate License, Not a Hack
China’s lesson for the US: it takes more than chips to win the AI race
Australia Faces Demographic Risk as Fertility Falls to Record Low
California County Reinstates Mask Mandate in Health Facilities as Respiratory Illness Risk Rises
Israel and Hamas Agree to First Phase of Trump-Brokered Gaza Truce, Hostages to Be Freed
×