Several front benches were photographed with striking RMT workers on Tuesday, despite explicit instructions from Starmer to stay away. The Guardian understands that some of the rebel MPs involved were called in to make a statement explaining their presence. A senior party source joked that a junior frontbencher was called in to claim that he “ambushed” them – a reference to an excuse used to explain the presence of Boris Johnson at his own birthday party. Another source, an MP, said the whips were “threatening people right now, trying to get them to apologize”. It is not clear what the consequences would be if they refused to apologize. Starmer, meanwhile, is being pressured by some members of his shadow cabinet to drop the threat of disciplinary action. A shadowy minister said it would be “outrageous” to warn or even fire Labor MPs for showing solidarity with the striking railway workers. Another shadowy cabinet member suggested it was the right decision to encourage lawmakers to stay away from the front lines of the strike as Labor tried to look like a future government – but mistakenly turned it into a show of force. No final decision is expected on how the misleading MPs will be handled until the end of this week’s RMT strikes. Five front benches defied Starmer’s order, issued in a memo from the leader’s office on Monday, telling the shady cabinet they needed to discuss with their teams the need to show “leadership” by staying away. “Remember that frontbenchers including PPS [parliamentary private secretaries] “It should not be in picket lines,” the message said. At the event, three PPS, a junior minister, Alex Sobel, and a whip, Nav Mishra, posted photos of themselves attending the first of three days of labor on Tuesday. Scottish Labor leader Anna Sarguar, who was also pictured with striking railway workers, wrote on Twitter that the government was to blame for failing to curb industrial activity. Starmer’s deputy, Angela Reiner, a former union representative who has appeared regularly in the past, also voiced support for the RMT strike without appearing in person, saying “workers have no choice.” Starmer’s decision to order his colleagues to give the picket lines a long distance has irritated many Labor MPs. Some front benches have even suggested privately that if one of their colleagues was fired by Starmer as a result, they would show their anger by watching themselves in a queue. Starmer wanted to avoid the Conservative caricature as a supporter of strikes – the most widespread action on the railroads in three decades. A Labor source said: “Keir’s Labor Party is on the side of the public and our decisions are driven by it. “Not everyone will like it, and we are prepared for that, but that way we will prove to be a serious business, a serious government on hold, and so we will win the election.” Subscribe to the First Edition, our free daily newsletter – every morning at 7 p.m. BST Shadow transport secretary Louise Haigh has repeatedly attacked her rival, Grant Shapps, for refusing to sit down with either side and try to negotiate a deal. The Labor leader has also repeatedly taken the opportunity to show that he takes a different approach from his predecessor, Jeremy Corbyn, an ardent supporter of the often-pleading trade union movement. During his first months in office, Starmer’s motto was “a new leadership.” Asked by the prime minister, Starmer blamed the shutdown on a series of government failures, including delays in renewing passports and canceled flights. He said the government did not “point the finger” to prevent strikes.
