Trade unions say UK prime minister must begin by revoking permission for US to use RAF bases for airstrikes in Gulf<\/p>\n
Trade unions have called on Andy Burnham to tackle the cost of living crisis at its source by pressuring Donald Trump to bring the conflict in the Middle East swiftly to an end.<\/p>\n
Leaders from 10 unions, including Unison, the UK\u2019s largest, urged the prime minister to oppose further fighting in the Gulf to help bring down energy and fuel costs.<\/p>\n
To put pressure on Trump, unions said Burnham must begin by revoking permission for the US to use RAF bases to launch airstrikes on Iran.<\/p>\n
The demand came after the foreign secretary, Ed Miliband, arrived in Washington this week for his first meetings with Trump administration officials since taking up the role last month.<\/p>\n
Miliband is expected to discuss the crisis in the Middle East with his counterpart, the US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, who said this week \u200bthere had been \u2060progress in discussions with Iran \u2060and Oman \u200bon \u200cgetting \u200cmore ships through \u200cthe strait of Hormuz, but that no final agreement had been \u200creached.<\/p>\n
Trump has vowed to give Iran \u201cone last chance\u201d after heavy bombing by both sides last week prompted renewed uncertainty about the outcome of the war and prospects for oil and gas prices.<\/p>\n
The general secretaries of 10 UK trade unions, representing more than 2.3 million workers, said in their letter to Burnham that he should do more to oppose \u201cthe US and Israel\u2019s devastating, illegal war on Iran\u201d, which was \u201cdeepening the cost of living crisis faced by our members and the British public\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cSince the war started, the average British household has seen its annual energy bill rise by \u00a3221, while monthly food bills are forecast to rise by \u00a332.80. Without an end to the war, there will be no end to this cost of living crisis,\u201d they wrote.<\/p>\n
The general secretaries said they were encouraged by the new government\u2019s focus on the cost of living and the measures it was taking \u201cto make life more affordable\u201d.<\/p>\n
But they said they were \u201cdeeply concerned\u201d that it had \u201cauthorised US airstrikes to be conducted from bases on British territories as part of the escalating war against Iran\u201d.<\/p>\n
Among the letter\u2019s signatories were Unison\u2019s Andrea Egan, the National Education Union\u2019s Daniel Kebede and the University and College Union\u2019s Jo Grady. Others represented included the Fire Brigades Union, the actors\u2019 union Equity and the Communications Workers Union.<\/p>\n
The general secretaries said Burnham had been quick to give permission for airstrikes from RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire and the Indian Ocean territory of Diego Garcia, which have become \u201cincreasingly important to the US due to the impact of Iranian counterstrikes on its Middle East bases\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe UK has a central role to play in de-escalation: the US has relied on its bases on UK territories to conduct the war, as they are capable of launching strategic bombers and sit within range of Iran,\u201d they wrote.<\/p>\n
\u201cRevoking permission for the US to use these bases would have a significant impact on the US\u2019s ability to further escalate a war that has been a catastrophe for people in the Middle East and an economic disaster for the world.\u201d<\/p>\n