Ex-Tory Rail Minister says he understands why Labour ‘reduce deal’ on strikes

An ex-Tory Rail Minister has apologised for failing to reach a deal with train drivers’ unions and bring an end to strike action.

Huw Merriman admitted he had “failed” and said he understood why the new Labour government “decided to cut a deal” with unions. Mr Merriman’s intervention strikes a stark contrast to some Tories – including leadership hopeful James Cleverly – who said the PM was being “played by union paymasters”.

It comes after the train drivers’ union Aslef said its members will vote on a pay offer, raising hopes of bringing to an end to two years of strikes across the entire network. The union has recommended drivers accept a 14.25% offer. It is made up of 5% for 2022-23, 4.75% for 2023-24 and 4.5% for the coming financial year.

Mr Merriman, who stood down from Parliament ahead of last month’s General Election, posted on X: “I’m sorry that I wasn’t able to reach an agreement with all unions who were on strike. Having tried to bring in workplace reform to improve rail services and, holding my hands up, failed, I can understand why the new [Government] have decided to cut a deal to end the uncertainty and move on with goodwill.”

He added: “Whilst it’s legitimate to debate the terms of the deal, the demonisation of train drivers and those onboard and at stations, who carry out a difficult and skilled job for the safety of passengers, is completely unfair. These people work hard and should be shown more respect.. I hope, by sticking my head up and accepting my part, others can show our rail workforce the respect and recognition they deserve and focus on the future.”

After the pay deal was reached last week, Aslef announced 22 new strike days, which relate to a separate dispute from the one which is expected to have been resolved. It relates to train drivers working for LNER, which runs the passenger service on the East Coast main line between London and Edinburgh.

But the Labour Minister Nick Thomas-Symonds defended the deal last week, saying the price of not settling the rail dispute had already cost the economy hundreds of millions of pounds. Last year Mr Merriman – who was the Rail Minister at the time – admitted to MPs more money had been lost due to the impact of the rail strikes than the cost of settling the dispute.