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| BA strike is unjustified - Adonis | BA strike is unjustified - Adonis |
| (30 minutes later) | |
| Transport Secretary Lord Adonis has attacked the planned strike by British Airways cabin crew staff, calling it "totally unjustified". | Transport Secretary Lord Adonis has attacked the planned strike by British Airways cabin crew staff, calling it "totally unjustified". |
| He told the BBC's Andrew Marr Show that the strike posed a threat "to the future of one of our great companies in this country". | He told the BBC's Andrew Marr Show that the strike posed a threat "to the future of one of our great companies in this country". |
| Members of the Unite union are due to strike for three days from 20 March and for four days from 27 March. | Members of the Unite union are due to strike for three days from 20 March and for four days from 27 March. |
| The dispute is over reduced staffing levels and pay at the airline. | The dispute is over reduced staffing levels and pay at the airline. |
| 'Deplore' | 'Deplore' |
| "Let's be absolutely clear the stakes are incredibly high in this strike and I absolutely deplore the strike," said Lord Adonis. | "Let's be absolutely clear the stakes are incredibly high in this strike and I absolutely deplore the strike," said Lord Adonis. |
| Lord Adonis said the stakes were 'incredibly high' | Lord Adonis said the stakes were 'incredibly high' |
| "It is not only the damage it's going to do to passengers and the inconvenience it's going to cause - which is quite disproportionate to the issues at stake - but also the threat it poses to the future of one of our great companies in this country. | "It is not only the damage it's going to do to passengers and the inconvenience it's going to cause - which is quite disproportionate to the issues at stake - but also the threat it poses to the future of one of our great companies in this country. |
| "It's totally unjustified, this strike, on the merits of the issues at stake and I do call on the union to engage constructively with the company." | "It's totally unjustified, this strike, on the merits of the issues at stake and I do call on the union to engage constructively with the company." |
| Lord Adonis's comments are in contrast to the more conciliatory words used by Prime Minister Gordon Brown when the strike dates were announced on Friday. | Lord Adonis's comments are in contrast to the more conciliatory words used by Prime Minister Gordon Brown when the strike dates were announced on Friday. |
| Urging the two sides to resume negotiations, the prime minister warned them "of the danger and risk to the British economy of disruptive strikes going ahead". | Urging the two sides to resume negotiations, the prime minister warned them "of the danger and risk to the British economy of disruptive strikes going ahead". |
| Unite has confirmed it will not strike over Easter, but warned there could be further action after 14 April if a resolution with BA is not agreed. | Unite has confirmed it will not strike over Easter, but warned there could be further action after 14 April if a resolution with BA is not agreed. |
| BA boss Willie Walsh said on Friday that the two parties were "not close at all" to coming to an agreement. | BA boss Willie Walsh said on Friday that the two parties were "not close at all" to coming to an agreement. |
| 'Bent on confrontation' | |
| BA says the cabin crew changes it imposed last November are vital cost-cutting measures to secure the airline's future and return it to profitability. | |
| The Unite union and its members say the changes are disproportionate. | |
| They also say they hit passenger services, as well as the earnings and career prospects of cabin crew. | |
| Unite says it acknowledges the "need for change", and has proposed its own cost-cutting package, which it says is worth £63m. BA has rejected this, disputing this figure. | |
| Unite's assistant general secretary Len McCluskey says the airline is "bent on confrontation". |