Firefighters vote to strike as industrial action spreads

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. It is clear that strikes are not being used as a last resort Gillian Keegan Meanwhile, teachers leaders accused ministers of having “squandered” an opportunity to avert Wednesday’s walkout after talks with Education Secretary Gillian Keegan broke up without agreement. National Education Union joint general secretary Kevin Courtney said ministers had been unwilling to engage seriously with the cause of the action.Speaking to the PA news agency outside the Department for Education, he said: “I regret to say that we didn’t hear anything that enables us to say that the strike shouldn’t go ahead on Wednesday. In a letter sent by Ms Keegan to union general secretaries on Friday, the Education Secretary asked teachers to inform schools if they plan to strike to help avoid “unnecessary disruption”. The NEU is required by law to provide schools with the number of members that it is calling on to take strike action in each workplace, but the union does not have to provide the names of members.” Mr Courtney said that while Wednesday’s walkout will go ahead, there was still time for ministers to avoid further strike days.“There was just a hint at the end of the discussions today that they might come back with something that was more like an offer,” he said.“So we’re hoping for further meetings, and we’re hoping for serious engagement because the issues we’re raising with them are very pertinent and very real.”