Mick Lynch strikes again! The tough-talking general secretary of the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT) was out on the airwaves again this morning to defend yet another day of train strikes. True to form, Lynch couldn’t quite get through the broadcast round without getting into a spat with the journalist interviewing him.
Speaking to Jayne Secker on Sky News from outside Euston station, stony-faced Lynch slammed the government’s offer to avert the strikes ‘rubbish’. The two clashed when Secker suggested that the RMT’s frequent strikes might be putting commuters off using the railway altogether and were perfectly happy to work from home. Was the RMT risking ‘striking their way out of a job?’ she asked.
Looking unimpressed and, if Mr Steerpike might suggest, a little tired of the whole thing, Lynch replied: ‘Well I don’t think that’s true. That’s a government line you’re punting out on their behalf.’
This hit a nerve with Secker who, talking over Lynch, shot back: ‘Excuse me, I’m talking to you about conversations I’ve had. Please, I’m not going to have you stand there and accuse me of being a government mouthpiece. I’m a human being, I’m a middle-aged woman and a journalist. And I’m talking to you about conversations I’ve had with people I know. This has got nothing to do with the government.’
Lynch doubled down: ‘It’s exactly the phraseology that I hear across the table from government ministers almost verbatim, so there you go. Maybe you’re just very in tune with what they say.’
With at least two further days of strike action planned for March, Mr S looks forward to seeing what further scraps the RMT general secretary gets into.
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