While welcoming the government’s £5bn pledge to boost bus and
cycling services, Unite, Britain and Ireland’s largest union,
said today (Tuesday 11 February) that the announcement should be
taken ‘with a pinch of salt’, given Boris Johnson’s record on big
infrastructure projects.
Unite national officer for passenger transport Bobby Morton said:
“Unite has thousands of members working in the bus industry
across the country and we welcome this announcement which
promises to improve frequency and fares as well as providing
4,000 zero-emission buses in England and Wales.
“This bus bonanza could herald a new dawn for passengers and
those working in the industry, after a decade of neglect of this
sector by successive Tory governments. But we will need to look
at the fine print before commenting more fully.
“Should these ambitious plans come to fruition in the next five
years, we will need to ensure that they do not come at the
expense of the pay, and terms and conditions of our members. We
won’t tolerate any ‘race to the bottom’ in this respect.
“If was serious about this, a
good start would be to reverse the austerity measures which led
to the axing of 3,000 routes in England alone, consequently
cutting off people and communities from work, leisure and
healthcare facilities.
“Also, this statement needs to come with a health warning, given
Boris Johnson’s record on his non-delivery of infrastructure
projects – we only have to look at the garden bridge across the
Thames when he was mayor of London which cost the taxpayer
millions of pounds before it was abandoned.
“His vaunted ‘Boris Island’ airport in the Thames estuary
suffered a similar fate.
“We also fear that this announcement is tied into the expansion
of HS2 and is being used to placate the Tory opponents of the
rail project.
“For all these reasons, while welcoming this much-needed
expansion in bus services, it needs to be taken with a pinch of
salt. The proof of the pudding will be in the eating.”
