Download
UK could bring in military to ease strikes – ruling party chairman
CGTN
Europe;UK
There has been industrial action in several UK sectors, with the threat of more to come. /Phil Noble/Reuters
There has been industrial action in several UK sectors, with the threat of more to come. /Phil Noble/Reuters

There has been industrial action in several UK sectors, with the threat of more to come. /Phil Noble/Reuters

The British government is considering using the military to help keep public services running if key workers, including in the state-run National Health Service, take strike action, the chairman of the governing Conservative Party said on Sunday.

Already grappling with industrial action in a range of sectors, Britain now faces strikes by thousands of nurses in England and ambulance workers in England and Wales who plan to walk out later this month over pay and conditions.

The government has repeatedly called on workers to halt strike action, saying it could not afford pay rises to cover inflation and that, even if it could meet their demands, such increases would further fuel inflation.

"Our message to the unions is to say 'This is not a time to strike, this is a time to try and negotiate.' But in the absence of that, it is important for the government... to have contingency plans in place," Nadhim Zahawi told Sky News.

"We're looking at the military, we're looking at a specialist response force... a surge capacity," he said, adding that the military could be brought in to drive ambulances.

READ MORE

Spanish police raid Europe's drug 'super cartel'

The family with six generations of UK-China trading

China's forgotten heroes

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, in power for just over a month, faces a raft of problems, including what could prove to be a lengthy recession in the run-up to an election that opinion polls suggest the Conservatives will lose.

The Sunday Times newspaper reported that Sunak could revive plans to curb the right to strike for public sector workers, including NHS staff, teachers and firefighters, while the Sunday Telegraph said pharmacists could be drafted in to help patients if health workers strike later this month.

Zahawi again blamed Russian President Vladimir Putin's military action in Ukraine for fuelling energy price rises and inflation, calling on public sector workers to "come together".

"There is a minimum safety level of delivery in place already, but the NHS will look at all contingency planning," he said.

Search Trends