Updated
11.34

Drivers


belonging
to
ASLEF
are
set
to
strike
for
24
hours
tomorrow,
reducing
East
Coast
intercity
services
by
an
estimated
75
per
cent.
No
LNER
trains
will
be
running
north
of
Edinburgh.

The
union
is
also
staging
a
ban
on
overtime
and
rest
day
working
from
today
until
Sunday.
The
walkout
is
unconnected
with
ASLEF’s
pay
dispute
with
English
operators,
and
has
been
caused
by
what
the
union
described
as
LNER’s
‘persistent
failure
to
comply
with
existing
agreements’.

ASLEF
general
secretary
Mick
Whelan
said:
‘Train
drivers
are
fed
up
with
the
bad
faith
shown
by
this
company,
probably
at
the
behest
of
the
transport
secretary
Mark
Harper
and
the
rail
minister,
Huw
Merriman,
and
we
are
not
prepared
to
put
up
with
being
bullied
and
pushed
about
by
a
company
that
thinks
it
can
break
agreements
whenever
it
feels
like
it.

‘We
honour
the
agreements
we
make,
because
we
are
honourable
people.
Train
companies
should
do
the
same.’

Nigel
Roebuck,
ASLEF’S
full-time
organiser
in
the
north-east
of
England,
and
lead
officer
for
LNER,
added:
‘Huw
Merriman
has
been
encouraging
this
company
to
try
to
enforce
Minimum
Service
Legislation
on
the
sly
–
because
he
has,
belatedly,
realised
that
MSLs
don’t
work,
he
has
been
leaning
on
the
company
to
persuade
every
driver
manager
and
driver
instructor
to
work
on
strike
days;
effectively
to
provide
a
minimum
service
level
without
invoking
the
legislation.’

LNER
responded:
‘Our
priority
focus
remains
on
minimising
disruption
to
customers.
We
continue
to
encourage
ASLEF
to
work
with
us
to
find
a
way
to
end
this
long
running
dispute.’

Meanwhile,
the
RMT
has
rejected
a
pay
offer
for
its
Network
Rail
members,
which
would
be
worth
3.5
per
cent.

RMT
general
secretary
Mick
Lynch
said:
‘Network
Rail
is
once
again
making
an
offer
that
represents
a
cut
in
living
standards
as
pay
is
not
keeping
up
with
the
rising
costs
of
rent,
mortgages,
energy,
food
and
other
essentials.
As
a
result,
RMT
is
calling
for
urgent
fresh
negotiations
and
a
much-improved
offer
for
this
year.’

Network
Rail
said
it
had
put
forward
an
unconditional
offer
with
other
benefits
that
was
“fair
and
represents
a
significant
increase,
given
current
and
forecast
rates
of
inflation”’