LONDON (Reuters) – Britain is looking forward to bringing in the armed forces to help keep public services running if key workers, including at Britain’s National Health Service, go on strike, the head of Britain’s ruling Conservative Party said on Sunday.
The UK is already facing union action in a range of sectors, but is now grappling with strikes by thousands of nurses and ambulance workers in England and Wales who plan to demand better pay and working conditions later this month.
The government has repeatedly asked the workers to stop the strike, saying that it cannot provide wage increases to cover inflation, and that even if it could meet the workers’ demands, such increases would increase inflation.
Alex Baldock, chief executive of British retailer Currys, said his company would not use Royal Mail “for the time being” to mitigate any impact of the strike.
Royal Mail workers have staged several strikes this year over a dispute over wages and working conditions, with more strikes planned this month.
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who has been in power for just over a month, faces a host of problems, including what could be a prolonged slump on the eve of the election as opinion polls point to a defeat for the Conservatives.
(Reporting by Elizabeth Piper)
