>As bosses at the far-left RMT, the country’s biggest transport union, plot summer strikes that will bring chaos to Britain, contentious moves and comments by its leaders risk alienating the public from its pay-rise campaign.
The Times can reveal that as Russia bombed Ukraine, an organiser involved in the proposed walk-out spouted Kremlin propaganda about the invasion. The comments were made in a podcast by Brendan Kelly, a regional organiser for the west and the southwest, whose members include Network Rail staff who support strikes.
The union has come under fire for much of the past decade as its bosses repeatedly expressed sympathies with Russian separatists who have been fighting government forces in the east of Ukraine. In March, it emerged that Eddie Dempsey, the RMT assistant general secretary, had visited the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine in 2015, where he posed for a picture with a pro-Russian separatist commander.
Lynch said a strike could bring railways to a halt
Lynch said a strike could bring railways to a halt
During the recording of the podcast for Bristol Unpacked Kelly, who described Dempsey as a “good bloke” and “personal friend”, repeated Kremlin claims that the Ukrainian government is allied with fascist forces, a remark branded “pathetic” by an expert.
>Kelly said: “There is a problem, though, and it can’t be ignored, the war that’s taken place for eight years with 14,000 deaths was the result of a huge amount of bombings being carried out by the Ukrainian government.
>“You can’t deny, it’s the truth, if the Ukrainian government was using forces, or allied with fascist groups in some of those areas, that’s where some of the left have campaigned, not necessarily in favour of Putin but the use of fascist forces against the population . . .
>“The Ukrainian government is not fascist but what they have done is unleash, or been prepared to unleash, some of these fascist groups to become embedded within state forces.”
>One of the reasons given by President Putin for the invasion was the “denazification” of Ukraine, to remove the influence of forces such as the Azov Battalion. Formed in 2014, it has been accused of torture and association with neo-Nazi ideology and symbolism. Its defence of the Azovstal steelworks in Mariupol brought it to wider attention.
>When the podcast host, Neil Maggs, who has presented on Radio 4, asked whether Kelly sided with Nato or Russia, he declined to give an answer.
>He added: “Dealing with Putin is the role of the Russian people.” Kelly did describe Russia as a “gangster capitalist state run by Putin” and said he was not a supporter of the Russian invasion. He said Nato had provoked Putin by “putting a gun on their [Russia’s] borders” and “would’ve been aware of the risky world they were creating by doing that”.
>James Nixey, director of the Russia-Eurasia programme at the think tank Chatham House, said: “It’s so pathetic and grotesque I just don’t know where to start. As it’s not a sensible comment, I don’t have a sensible reply.”
Dr Ben Noble, associate professor of Russian politics at University College London, said: “It may well be that the Kremlin is using these people as ‘useful idiots’ — that is, as unwitting conduits for propaganda.”
>The comments risk division within the union before what could be the biggest rail strike since privatisation, and since the union was founded in 1990.
>,The Times can also reveal that Steve Skelly, a regional organiser in the same district as Kelly, gave a speech at a 2014 meeting of Solidarity with the Anti-fascist Resistance in Ukraine, a campaign group that echoes the Kremlin line that Ukraine is a “far-right regime”.
>A report of the meeting said that Skelly, who represents staff at Great Western Railway, “said he was proud” that the RMT was the first union to back the group and moved a successful motion at the TUC congress.
>In May it was revealed that Alex Gordon, a former train driver and president of the RMT, is a longstanding Marxist who has branded Ukraine “a failed state held to ransom by neo-Nazis”.
After Moscow invaded Crimea in 2015, he protested outside Ukraine’s embassy wearing the black and orange Ribbon of St George, a symbol of Russian military valour. He denies supporting Putin or his actions in Ukraine.
In 2014 a photograph emerged of Steve Hedley, the assistant general secretary, in Russia in a military hat and brandishing an assault rifle.
This week members of the union voted overwhelmingly to walk out over jobs, pay and conditions. Six months of strikes could begin in the next two weeks if talks between unions, train operators and the government fail.
>The Times can reveal that the RMT has amassed £57 million that will help bankroll its strike. The pot is made up of a property portfolio of £35 million including an £21.7 million block of luxury flats in Clapham, south London.
>Mick Lynch, general secretary of the RMT, last night told the Political Thinking with Nick Robinson podcast that the planned strikes could in effect stop the rail network. “This involves Network Rail’s infrastructure — all the signallers, the controllers and all the maintenance staff from the top of Scotland to the bottom of Cornwall and all points in between — and if they’re involved in action, that will stop the railway to a large extent.”
>He denied the union backed Putin. “I think that was six or seven years ago.”
>The RMT said: “The RMT does not support Vladimir Putin or the war in Ukraine. Both Brendan Kelly and Steve Skelly agree with that position.”
>The Department for Transport said: “We are committed to helping passengers get the best deals on rail across the country, introducing new railcards and season tickets – including flexi-seasons which we launched last summer – and our recent Great British Rail Sale saved passengers over £7 million.”
> The Times can reveal that as Russia bombed Ukraine, an organiser involved in the proposed walk-out spouted Kremlin propaganda about the invasion. The comments were made in a podcast by Brendan Kelly, a regional organiser for the west and the southwest, whose members include Network Rail staff who support strikes.
So they found one crank and are using that to paint the entire union as pro-Kremlin?
That’s not journalism, it’s a bad joke.
Worth listening to this for a bit more impartial context that isn’t from Murdoch.
When you get paid double the average income, it’s easy to afford time off to support genocide
No they don’t, they complained when the previous Ukrainian government went after a bunch of trade unionists, just like the complain about Putin going after people, including all of Ukraine. The Times have lost their damn minds.
5 comments
[Archive (no paywall) link](https://archive.ph/PMBsa)
>As bosses at the far-left RMT, the country’s biggest transport union, plot summer strikes that will bring chaos to Britain, contentious moves and comments by its leaders risk alienating the public from its pay-rise campaign.
The Times can reveal that as Russia bombed Ukraine, an organiser involved in the proposed walk-out spouted Kremlin propaganda about the invasion. The comments were made in a podcast by Brendan Kelly, a regional organiser for the west and the southwest, whose members include Network Rail staff who support strikes.
The union has come under fire for much of the past decade as its bosses repeatedly expressed sympathies with Russian separatists who have been fighting government forces in the east of Ukraine. In March, it emerged that Eddie Dempsey, the RMT assistant general secretary, had visited the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine in 2015, where he posed for a picture with a pro-Russian separatist commander.
Lynch said a strike could bring railways to a halt
Lynch said a strike could bring railways to a halt
During the recording of the podcast for Bristol Unpacked Kelly, who described Dempsey as a “good bloke” and “personal friend”, repeated Kremlin claims that the Ukrainian government is allied with fascist forces, a remark branded “pathetic” by an expert.
>Kelly said: “There is a problem, though, and it can’t be ignored, the war that’s taken place for eight years with 14,000 deaths was the result of a huge amount of bombings being carried out by the Ukrainian government.
>“You can’t deny, it’s the truth, if the Ukrainian government was using forces, or allied with fascist groups in some of those areas, that’s where some of the left have campaigned, not necessarily in favour of Putin but the use of fascist forces against the population . . .
>“The Ukrainian government is not fascist but what they have done is unleash, or been prepared to unleash, some of these fascist groups to become embedded within state forces.”
>One of the reasons given by President Putin for the invasion was the “denazification” of Ukraine, to remove the influence of forces such as the Azov Battalion. Formed in 2014, it has been accused of torture and association with neo-Nazi ideology and symbolism. Its defence of the Azovstal steelworks in Mariupol brought it to wider attention.
>When the podcast host, Neil Maggs, who has presented on Radio 4, asked whether Kelly sided with Nato or Russia, he declined to give an answer.
>He added: “Dealing with Putin is the role of the Russian people.” Kelly did describe Russia as a “gangster capitalist state run by Putin” and said he was not a supporter of the Russian invasion. He said Nato had provoked Putin by “putting a gun on their [Russia’s] borders” and “would’ve been aware of the risky world they were creating by doing that”.
>James Nixey, director of the Russia-Eurasia programme at the think tank Chatham House, said: “It’s so pathetic and grotesque I just don’t know where to start. As it’s not a sensible comment, I don’t have a sensible reply.”
Dr Ben Noble, associate professor of Russian politics at University College London, said: “It may well be that the Kremlin is using these people as ‘useful idiots’ — that is, as unwitting conduits for propaganda.”
>The comments risk division within the union before what could be the biggest rail strike since privatisation, and since the union was founded in 1990.
>,The Times can also reveal that Steve Skelly, a regional organiser in the same district as Kelly, gave a speech at a 2014 meeting of Solidarity with the Anti-fascist Resistance in Ukraine, a campaign group that echoes the Kremlin line that Ukraine is a “far-right regime”.
>A report of the meeting said that Skelly, who represents staff at Great Western Railway, “said he was proud” that the RMT was the first union to back the group and moved a successful motion at the TUC congress.
>In May it was revealed that Alex Gordon, a former train driver and president of the RMT, is a longstanding Marxist who has branded Ukraine “a failed state held to ransom by neo-Nazis”.
After Moscow invaded Crimea in 2015, he protested outside Ukraine’s embassy wearing the black and orange Ribbon of St George, a symbol of Russian military valour. He denies supporting Putin or his actions in Ukraine.
In 2014 a photograph emerged of Steve Hedley, the assistant general secretary, in Russia in a military hat and brandishing an assault rifle.
This week members of the union voted overwhelmingly to walk out over jobs, pay and conditions. Six months of strikes could begin in the next two weeks if talks between unions, train operators and the government fail.
>The Times can reveal that the RMT has amassed £57 million that will help bankroll its strike. The pot is made up of a property portfolio of £35 million including an £21.7 million block of luxury flats in Clapham, south London.
>Mick Lynch, general secretary of the RMT, last night told the Political Thinking with Nick Robinson podcast that the planned strikes could in effect stop the rail network. “This involves Network Rail’s infrastructure — all the signallers, the controllers and all the maintenance staff from the top of Scotland to the bottom of Cornwall and all points in between — and if they’re involved in action, that will stop the railway to a large extent.”
>He denied the union backed Putin. “I think that was six or seven years ago.”
>The RMT said: “The RMT does not support Vladimir Putin or the war in Ukraine. Both Brendan Kelly and Steve Skelly agree with that position.”
>The Department for Transport said: “We are committed to helping passengers get the best deals on rail across the country, introducing new railcards and season tickets – including flexi-seasons which we launched last summer – and our recent Great British Rail Sale saved passengers over £7 million.”
> The Times can reveal that as Russia bombed Ukraine, an organiser involved in the proposed walk-out spouted Kremlin propaganda about the invasion. The comments were made in a podcast by Brendan Kelly, a regional organiser for the west and the southwest, whose members include Network Rail staff who support strikes.
So they found one crank and are using that to paint the entire union as pro-Kremlin?
That’s not journalism, it’s a bad joke.
Worth listening to this for a bit more impartial context that isn’t from Murdoch.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m0017sxg
When you get paid double the average income, it’s easy to afford time off to support genocide
No they don’t, they complained when the previous Ukrainian government went after a bunch of trade unionists, just like the complain about Putin going after people, including all of Ukraine. The Times have lost their damn minds.