PM 'Weakness' Blamed for Strikes

In BBC's broadcast "PM 'Weakness' Blamed for Strikes", David Cameron, leader of the Conservative's party, claims that Prime Minister Gordon Brown has failed to take a tough stand against the Unions, like Unite, that have been causing the recent strikes in the UK. The strike mentioned in the broadcast is of the cabin crews for British Airways that are members of the union Unite. The disruption to the flight schedules has seriously affected the number of planes leaving and coming into Heathrow, the airport reporting that 59% of their flights left one day and 63% arrived. A possible rail strike has also been threatened. PM Gordon Brown claims that "we [labour] want them to work, but we also want arbitration and negotiation to be possible within the union's management and work force. One union leader claimed that the strike had nothing to do with the Labour party, but rather that it was simply an industrial dispute between Unite and British Airways.

The strike could not come at a more inconvenient time, as Gordon Brown must decide when to dissolve parliament and call for reelections. Whether or not Labour will stay in power is a question many have, and the strikes cause questioning of their policies. Economic reform may then become an issue of debate during the elections.