Over the London Underground, there is a ‘big stalemate” between Mayor and Government
Mick Lynch, RMT general secretary, said that there was a “big stalemate”Talks between the London Mayor’s Office and the Government over funding for the Underground were halted.
“There have been talks lots and lots of times,”He stated. “There have been many talks but we are not included in the main discussion between the Government and Mayor’s Office. They won’t even reveal the numbers involved which run into the billions of pounds.
“Essentially, Mayor (Sadiq) Khan is offering our members’ terms and conditions as a hostage to get the funding of the railway, and the bus services as well, the whole of TfL pushed downwards.”
When asked if he believes there will be an agreement, Lynch replied that he would like to. They need to bring us together so we can discuss our issues. However, there’s a lot of stalemate at the moment.
“The stalemate begins between the two authorities, the Government and Mayor. It is very difficult for us all to understand what’s happening. Because the employer does not know how much money it will have, there is no meaningful conversation between us and them. That is not how you run a major city in the world.
“We’ve got to have a settlement that allows the people of London to get a decent transport system and the workers on that system to be assured of their future.”