Shadow ministers question Labour’s stance on strikes after Tarry sacking

theguardian.com:

Senior shadow ministers have privately expressed doubt that Labour’s position on strikes is sustainable, after Keir Starmer sacked the frontbencher Sam Tarry for doing broadcast interviews from a rail strike picket line.

The Guardian understands Tarry was told he was sacked as shadow minister for buses and local transport for saying that it was “not acceptable to offer below inflation pay rises” because it would be a real-terms pay cut for workers.

Tarry was told Labour’s position was that it was for ministers and unions to negotiate terms. That dispute is likely to cause significant alarm from trade unions about Labour’s position, including those affiliated to the party.

Frontbenchers told the Guardian they could be put in untenable positions with multiple industrial actions planned by unions in the coming months – including by rail workers, postal workers, NHS staff and teachers. “There are a lot of people saying, I don’t know if I can stay on the frontbench,” one senior source said.

But there is also significant anger from the leader’s office that Tarry conducted a media round without any prior warning, and multiple sources suggested he had been goading Starmer to sack him in order to help him fight a difficult deselection battle.

“Sam Tarry did a full media round without his boss Lou Haigh [the shadow transport secretary] or the leader’s office knowing in advance,” a Labour source said. “This represents a total breakdown of discipline and put the leadership in a position where it was impossible to do anything else.”

Starmer has told shadow ministers not to join picket lines, stressing that Labour is a party seeking to govern that should aim to solve disputes. Several shadow ministers who joined picket lines during the last