Energy and climate change secretary Ed Vaizey has given his backing to the announcement that Unite union workers no longer plan strike action.

"A strike would have been disruptive to the hardworking lives of millions of motorists around the country and put unnecessary pressures on our essential and emergency services," he argued.

However, Mr Vaizey added that should industrial action have been implemented, the government was prepared with 140,000 trained military drivers who could have picked up the slack of petrol and diesel deliveries to ensure forecourts across the country did not run dry.

He made his comments in a parliamentary update on Friday (May 11th).

Earlier this month, Road Haulage Association chief executive Geoff Dunning also hailed the Unite announcement as being a positive move for the UK, but added that while a strike is no longer on the cards, other forms of industrial action are still a real possibility.

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Posted by Helen Wrigglesworth