'Historic', say unions as key workers return to work

12 April 2012

Tens of thousands of public sector workers were returning to work today following the biggest walkout in a generation which brought disruption to schools, hospitals and other key services across Britain.

Unions hailed yesterday's "historic" strike as the biggest since the 1979 Winter of Discontent, saying up to two million workers took industrial action over the Government's controversial pension reforms.

But David Cameron said the "irresponsible and damaging" walkout had been a "damp squib" and was far from as universally supported as claimed.

The strike closed more than three quarters of schools in England, as well as courts, museums, libraries and jobcentres, disrupted transport, hospitals and government departments and led to around 15% of driving tests being cancelled.

In the capital, police were called in to help the London Ambulance Service (LAS) attend emergencies after thousands of NHS workers went on strike.

Officials from LAS said it faced "severe pressure" after 42% of staff walked out, while NHS London strategic health authority said the service received 30% more 999 calls than normal.

The Metropolitan Police Service said while the ambulance service dealt with "critical incidents" where lives were at risk, police provided medical support and transporting medical staff where needed.

A teacher and a six-year-old boy, who was taken to school by his parent because of the strike, were also injured after an explosion at Hazeley Academy in Milton Keynes.

The 35-year-old female teacher and the youngster both suffered burns and are understood to have inhaled potentially noxious gases.

It came after Prime Minister David Cameron last week said that people should be allowed to take their children to work if they were not involved in the dispute.

As the UK started to count the cost of the day of action which ended at midnight, the BBC was forced to apologise after Jeremy Clarkson declared he would like to see striking public sector workers "shot" in front of their families.

Appearing on BBC's The One Show last night, The Top Gear presenter said: "How dare they go on strike when they've got these gilt-edged pensions that are going to be guaranteed while the rest of us have to work for a living."

The broadcaster's comments sparked hundreds of angry comments on Twitter.

Officials from 30 unions involved in the strike reported huge support, with up to 90% of some organisations taking action, often for the first time in their lives.

Physiotherapists, headteachers, librarians, lollipop ladies, refuse collectors, weather forecasters and scientists were among those involved in the stoppage.

More than 1,000 rallies were held across the UK, including one in central London attended by tens of thousands of workers, some accompanied by their children.

Len McCluskey, leader of Unite, said the rally showed the depth of anger among public sector workers, while Unison leader Dave Prentis hit back at Mr Cameron's comments.

"I wouldn't call two million people taking strike action a damp squib," he said.

"The thousands of picket lines, demonstrations, rallies and events are not a figment of our imagination. These people are angry public servants who the Government has driven to the end of their tether."

The Local Government Association said around a third of council employees in England and Wales were not in work, equating to around 670,000 staff, out of a total of 2.1 million.

A "handful" of staff from 10 Downing Street went on strike, and the school attended by Mr Cameron's son Elwen, was closed.

Warnings of massive delays at Heathrow airport failed to materialise, with passengers saying border controls were "better than usual".

But union officials accused the Government of "ramping up" possible airport disruption and claimed that "under-trained" staff had been drafted in to cover striking immigration and passport workers.

Meanwhile, the Department of Health ordered NHS trusts in England to not release figures regarding staff on strike or the number of cancelled operations and appointments, sparking accusations from unions that they were trying to hide the disruption.

A letter said a "national position" statement must be sent to the media ahead of any regional breakdowns.

The Cabinet Office said it was wrong of the unions to claim that two million workers had been on strike.

Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude described the action as "inappropriate, untimely and irresponsible" and said that union leaders should take full responsibility for the disruption.

He also branded claims the Government is not negotiating with unions as "simply not true" and said that formal discussion with teaching unions would take place today and meetings with health union leaders would be held tomorrow.

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