London: Public sector workers in Britain staged what is being billed as the biggest strike in decades on Wednesday to protest the cash-strapped government's plans to recast their pensions in an effort to reduce the cost to taxpayers.
The one-day strike has been called in protest at the government's plan to make public sector pensions less generous in the years ahead. The pension reforms are part of a package of austerity measures designed to get a grip on the country's high borrowing levels.
The Department for Education estimated that at least half of the nation's schools had been closed because of the one-day strike. The action was also expected to lead to longer waits for visitors needing immigration checks, though London's Heathrow and Gatwick airports reported no unusual delays by 0800 GMT.
The strike was billed as the biggest labor action in Britain for decades, certainly since the so-called Winter of Discontent in 1979, which presaged the arrival of Margaret Thatcher as Prime Minister.
"Hopefully the government will change its position. The situation was made by the government and the bankers and the people who are asked to pay the price is public sector workers."
"The strike is not going to achieve anything," Osborne said. "It is only going to make our economy weaker and potentially cost jobs."
Osborne conceded that the British economy may slip back into recession next year if the crisis in the 17-nation eurozone deteriorates even further, and that the government will have to borrow more over this Parliament than previously expected.
In a further effort to cut long-term debt, Osborne also said the age for collecting state pensions would be raised to 67 in 2026, earlier than previously planned.
The one-day strike has been called in protest at the government's plan to make public sector pensions less generous in the years ahead. The pension reforms are part of a package of austerity measures designed to get a grip on the country's high borrowing levels.
The Department for Education estimated that at least half of the nation's schools had been closed because of the one-day strike. The action was also expected to lead to longer waits for visitors needing immigration checks, though London's Heathrow and Gatwick airports reported no unusual delays by 0800 GMT.
The strike was billed as the biggest labor action in Britain for decades, certainly since the so-called Winter of Discontent in 1979, which presaged the arrival of Margaret Thatcher as Prime Minister.
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"Hopefully the government will change its position. The situation was made by the government and the bankers and the people who are asked to pay the price is public sector workers."
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"The strike is not going to achieve anything," Osborne said. "It is only going to make our economy weaker and potentially cost jobs."
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Osborne conceded that the British economy may slip back into recession next year if the crisis in the 17-nation eurozone deteriorates even further, and that the government will have to borrow more over this Parliament than previously expected.
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In a further effort to cut long-term debt, Osborne also said the age for collecting state pensions would be raised to 67 in 2026, earlier than previously planned.
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