BA cabin crew strike begins

By Alex Stevenson Cabin crew at British Airways have begun the first of a series of strikes after last-ditch attempts to resolve the dispute collapsed at the weekend. Passengers using the airline face disruption as the first five-day industrial action gets underway. Unite had offered a last-minute deal to call the strike off. They said […]

BAA abandons third runway bid

By Alex Stevenson Airports operator BAA has abandoned its attempt to secure expansion through the construction of new runways at Heathrow and Stansted. It withdrew its planning application after it became clear the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition government was determined to block further expansion. Last Thursday’s full coalition document made clear the government would “cancel” the […]

‘Catastrophic breakdown’ in BA strike talks

By politics.co.uk staff British Airways (BA) passengers face unavoidable disruption after the Unite union ruled out further talks before tomorrow’s strikes begin. Unite joint general secretary Tony Woodley was quoted as saying there had been a “catastrophic breakdown” in relations between the negotiating teams as the first strike approached. Yesterday’s talks broke down early after […]

Unite appeals strike ruling

By politics.co.uk staff The trade union Unite is appealing against a high court ruling which prevented the start of today’s 20-day British Airways strike. In a surprising verdict which halted the strike just hours before it was due to begin, the judge said the strike was illegal due to a technical breach of the 1992 […]

High court quashes planned BA strike

By politics.co.uk staff Legal action by British Airways has successfully blocked tomorrow’s planned strike. The ruling at the high court went against the grain of expectations by most experts. The Unite union lost because it failed to follow industrial action rules relating to the need to contact all those eligible for voting with the result […]

New govt intervenes in BA dispute

By politics.co.uk staff The new government is intending to intervene in the dispute between British Airways and its airline staff. Transport secretary Philip Hammond will meet both sides of the dispute on Monday, and negotiation facilitators Acas understand both sides are interested in more talks. But that has not stopped BA seeking an injunction in […]

Brown scrambles ministers for volcanic ash meeting

By Ian Dunt Gordon Brown is to chair an urgent ministerial meeting this afternoon over the volcanic ash which has grounded all flights to and from the UK. The meeting looked into problems resulting from volcanic ash in the atmosphere and how government might be able to mitigate its effects. Concern is starting to centre […]

Labour tries to limit political damage as BA strike nears

By Ian Dunt Labour was frantically trying to limit the political damage from its association with the Unite union as the British Airways (BA) strike neared this morning. The Tories began the day with a fierce and outspoken attack on Labour’s relationship with the union, accusing Gordon Brown of retreating to the days of Militant […]

Brown condemns ‘deplorable’ BA strike

By Alex Stevenson Gordon Brown has dismissed the British Airways (BA) cabin crew strike as “deplorable”, despite its backers being one of Labour’s main funders. The Unite union is resisting government demands that it backs down as holidaymakers face travel disruption in the run-up to Easter. “It’s the wrong time, it’s unjustified, it’s deplorable,” the […]

Brown calls for BA strike resolution – eventually

By Alex Stevenson Gordon Brown has called for a resolution of the British Airways (BA) cabin crew dispute “as quickly as possible”, after the Tories attacked the Unite union’s links to the Labour party. This morning Unite announced a three-day walkout from March 20th to March 22nd will be followed by industrial action from March […]