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Good morning and welcome to the Guardian's rolling coverage of the largest strike for three decades, as schools, hospitals, courts, the transport network and the government brace themselves for a walkout involving up to two million workers.
We'll have news from our reporters around Britain as the country prepares for the biggest day of industrial unrest since the 1979 Winter of Discontent.
Nurses, paramedics, cleaners, porters and receptionists at Birmingham Women's Hospital are among those who walked out at midnight in the row over pensions.
Picket lines are being mounted outside thousands of schools, hospitals, jobcentres, courts and other buildings, while more than 1,000 rallies and other demonstrations will be held across the UK.
Weather forecasting staff at the Met Office, workers at the Royal Fleet Auxiliary, catering employees in the Commons and museum curators are among those due to join the strike, while more than 1,000 rallies and demonstrations will be held in towns and cities across the UK.
Queues are expected to build up at airports including Heathrow, no ferries will run to or from Shetland, the metro in Newcastle will not run, and the Mersey tunnels will close, disrupting the 80,000 motorists who drive through every day.
Union leaders will travel to towns and cities across the country in a show of support for the strikers, many of whom will be going on strike for the first time.
The TUC general secretary, Brendan Barber, will tell a rally in Birmingham that the government has scrapped a bankers' bonus tax and replaced it with a "teachers', nurses' and lollipop ladies' tax".
He will say that no one takes industrial action lightly or wants to inconvenience the public, adding:
When unfairness is piled on injustice you are right to take a stand. Ministers keep saying that all they want is to secure the long-term affordability of public service pensions. The brutal truth is simply this - that the living standards of millions of low and medium-paid public service workers are being hammered in the name of reducing the deficit.
The cuts are beginning to scythe through our public services, more and more jobs are under threat, and as the pay freeze bites - while inflation roars ahead - real wage cuts are making it harder than ever to make ends meet.
We found out yesterday that the government is to step up the attacks on public sector staff with a continuing pay cap and pay variation at a local level - and I don't think they mean better.
This is on top of an increase in the state pension age for anyone under 40 - a toxic triple that will do nothing to get the economy moving again, but will simply hit consumer confidence."
The government, meanwhile, has told unions that the strike will achieve "nothing" — and issued a fresh warning about the impact of the walkout at airports.
The Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude said a "significant" number of civil servants had volunteered to cover for striking Border Agency staff, including a "considerable" number from the Ministry of Defence.
The prime minister's official spokesman said:
There are going to be queues but we have proper contingency plans in place and we have been training people to do what we can to mitigate the impact. The strike action will achieve nothing - it would be far better to continue with the talks."
To get the best take on what's happening around the country today, we're asking people to let us know about action where they live and work. The datablog — which will be live any minute — is here. Please swing by and let us know what's going on around you.
You can also get live updates by following our strike team on Twitter.
We've also pulled together a comprehensive list of who else to follow today for Twitter strike updates. It's here.
Time for a quick schools update, courtesy of my colleague Polly Curtis. She writes:
All week, the Department for Education has been estimating that around 90% of schools would be closed by today's strike. So this morning's announcement that in fact 13% of schools will be open, 13% partially open and only 58% fully closed (16% don't know) might make the strike seem smaller than anticipated.
Was that the idea? I asked the DfE when they collected the figures — which Nick Gibb has just been speaking about on the Today programme — and they told me it had been over the past two days, but that processing had to happen overnight.
It's certainly a big job to call around the 150 local authorities plus the academies and free schools — but they couldn't tell me what the overnight processing had involved.
I asked what the previous 90% estimate was based on and was told that it was an "informed guess" based on early returns. DfE say they are just trying to keep the public informed on the impacts of the strike, and will later inform parliament of its effects.
But conspiracy theorists — and 2m public sector workers — may question whether there's also a bit of spin involved.
While we're on the subject of education, here's a list of the strike events and rallies the NUT has planned for the day.
Severin Carrell, our Scotland correspondent — who will be out and about in Edinburgh today covering the main union march and hitting a few picket lines — says #N30Scot is the hashtag to watch for Scottish updates. We've also got Kirsty Scott in Glasgow, so why not follow her here.
Time for a quick jog around the country to see what's happened so far — and where. First update comes via PA.
The Mersey Tunnels in Merseyside were closed just after midnight as workers became some of the first public sector employees to strike.
Among those walking-out was Inspector Russ Aitken from Mersey Tunnel police, who is taking industrial action for the first time in 35 years. He told BBC Radio 5 Live:
I feel quite strongly that I need to come out on strike. I feel angry that I'm paying a 50% increase in pension contributions and I feel angry that I'm going to have to work longer and at the end of it get less."
Asked what he hoped striking would achieve, the local government worker added:
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."
Next stop: Birmingham.
Employees at Birmingham Women's hospital in Edgbaston were also among the first public sector workers to walk out at midnight, setting up picket lines which will be manned for the next 24 hours.
Unison president Eleanor Smith, who is a theatre nurse at the hospital which employs around 400 union members, said:
This has not been a decision that I've taken lightly. I have been a nurse for 30 years and this is the first time I have been compelled to take this action because of the government. The government wants us to work longer, pay more and at the end get less. How fair is that?"
She added:
I came into the public sector not for great wages but for a pension. Now this pension which I was relying on is going to be taken away - not totally, but considerably reduced. I get the impression the government doesn't like the public sector."
Hopping over the Irish Sea, this is a snapshot of the huge disruption facing Northern Ireland today:
More than 200,000 workers across the province will take industrial action over pension cuts, with representatives also objecting to wider government spending reductions.
The Northern Ireland Public Service Alliance — representing members across the civil service — will alone have more than 45,000 workers on strike and stage 160 pickets.
All of Northern Ireland's 1,200 schools face disruption to transport and catering services, and, with most of the teaching unions striking, it is likely that a majority will be forced to close their doors.
In the health sector, emergency services are to be maintained and GP services and ambulances will be kept running despite disruption caused by industrial action.
Polly Curtis has just pinged over a press release from the Cabinet Office minister, Francis Maude, who has described the strike as "inappropriate, untimely and irresponsible". He condemns strikers for taking action while talks are still ongoing, adding "responsibility for any disruption which people may experience today lies squarely with union leaders".
Here's a bit more of his statement:
We have listened to the concerns of public sector workers and that is why at the beginning of this month we put an improved offer on the table. The offer ensures that public sector pensions will remain among the very best available while also being fair and affordable to taxpayers.
While discussions are continuing I would urge public sector workers to look at the offer for themselves rather than listening to the rhetoric of their union leaders. These are the sort of pensions that few in the private sector can enjoy.
This morning, I want to reassure the public that we have done everything we can to minimise disruption. Rigorous contingency planning is in place across all sectors to try and limit the impact of the strike action and to ensure that key public services remain open.
However, we now estimate today that around three quarters of schools in England will be closed or partially closed today. Council services such as refuse collection, street cleaning and libraries are also likely to be affected. For information about public services I would urge people to visit http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Nl1/Newsroom/DG_200255."
Maude goes on:
We expect that passengers may face longer than normal waiting times at airports and ports, however, robust contingency plans are in place. Overnight the borders have been managed without any major problems, and are currently operating normally."
There will also be an impact on health services and some organisations have had to reschedule elective surgery and outpatients appointments so that urgent cases can be prioritised. But, emergency and critical care services will be operating normally and 999 calls will be responded to as usual."
Still, it's not all bad news on the transport and borders front. As the Cabinet Office minister proudly trumpets:
There have already been several seizures this morning, for example 1.5 kg of cocaine seized at Stansted."
It's obviously still ridiculously early in the day — but not too early for some to wonder whether fears over the strike may have been exaggerated. This tweet from James Chapman, political editor of the Daily Mail:
On the same point, one poll suggests that only 12% of people think they will be affected by the strike — and that only 4% of private sector workers claim to know a lot about why the strikes are happening.
This from Political Betting:
Another issue comes from ComRes: 56% agreed that public sector workers "have to take their share of the economic pain which means accepting reductions in their pension provision". Just 28% disagree and 16% say they don't know.
On Ed Miliband's position YouGov found 23% think saying he he should support the action with 33% saying he should oppose them. Amongst Labour supporters 41% think the strikes should be supported with 14% opposing.
In this piece, which comes courtesy of my video colleagues, an NHS physiotherapist explains why she's taking strike action.
In case you've just joined us, here's a quick summary of what's happening today:
• Disruption across UK as more than 2 million public sector workers strike
• Airports, schools, railways and hospitals hit in biggest stoppage in 30 years
• Reform of public sector pensions is at heart of dispute
• Government brands strike "inappropriate, untimely and irresponsible"
What's going on in Northern Ireland? This rundown from our Ireland correspondent, Henry McDonald:
• All buses and trains including the cross-border rail service have come
to a halt in Northern Ireland this morning as the public sector strike begins in the Province.
• As thousands of workers in the public service strike today all non-emergency operations have also been suspended due to the industrial action.
• Rallies will be held across the north of Ireland with the largest taking place in Belfast city centre later. There will also be demonstrations in Derry, Newry, Omagh, Ballymena, Portadown, Magherafelt and Cookstown.
• Most of the province's 1,200 schools will also be closed today after the majority of teachers union voted to back the national strike.
• An estimated 200,000 workers are taking part in the strike, with the
Northern Secretary of the Irish Congress, Peter Bunting, describing the
action as "putting down a marker that we will oppose the austerity
cuts that have not worked and will not work. We need a Plan B."
My colleague Hannah Waldram, who's looking after our user-generated map of what's happening where, says that 3,000 people will be affected by the halting of rubbish collections in Newport, South Wales.
Over on our politics live blog, Andrew Sparrow is looking at the simmering row between the unions and the government over whether or not talks are still going on. He writes:
On the Today programme this morning Dave Prentis, the Unison general secretary, said the talks between government and the unions about public sector pensions were not continuing. Here's the quote, which I've taken from PoliticsHome.
The last time we saw Treasury ministers and the Cabinet Office's ministers was 2 November – they've not asked to see us since then. This idea that negotiations are continuing is just not true."
But Francis Maude, the Cabinet Office minister, has put out a statement saying Prentis is wrong.
More here …
There's a nice round up of the situation in South Wales this morning on the website of the radio station Capital South Wales:
The UK-wide day of action will see thousands of teachers, bus drivers, university lecturers and UK Border Agency staff walk out.
• UCU — the union for college and university workers — says there are rallies in Cardiff, Swansea, Wrexham, Aberystwyth and Bangor, as around three million public sector workers across the UK are expected to down tools in the biggest industrial action for a generation.
• In Cardiff, almost all schools will be closed, most libraries will shut, and waste collection will be disrupted — with only black bin bags and bio bags being prioritised for collection.
• Cardiff Bus say no services are expected to run as drivers take part in the strikes. It means that insufficient employees will be attending work to allow them to safely run a bus service.
My colleague Robert Booth, who has hopped down to Heathrow this morning to see whether the UK is still open for business, is finding few signs of disruption so far. He tweets:
Arrivals reporting fast clearance of immigration, no queues. 'Fastest ever' — Sue off Bangkok plane."
A BAA boss has told Rob that detailed passport checks are being carried out by US, Canada, Australia, NZ and Japan. Guards at Heathrow — where an eight-hour delay had been feared — are doing face checks only.
A rumination or two now from our industrial editor, Dan Milmo.
Heathrow owner BAA reported no significant delays at passport control this morning. Responding to passengers' concerns on its Twitter feed, the UK's largest airport said: 'Immigration is currently running at normal service without delays but check with your airline for delays.'This is good news for Heathrow because 7am is the airport's witching hour, when international arrivals reach the peak for the day, which in turn bodes well for the rest of the day already. There is another peak in the evening, but that is largely for departing flights.
No doubt chastened into default pessimism by the snow farrago last year, Heathrow added: 'There still remains a possibility of delays for arriving passengers later in the day.'
The issue now is whether this good performance so far is down to contingency planning from a UK Border Agency that appeared to be in administrative meltdown in recent weeks — or whether passengers have paid attention to newspapers in recent days and switched their flights to alternative dates. My immediate hunch is the latter. Anyone who has come off an A380 at Heathrow, even on a normal day at border control, knows that the queues can be awful and reports of shorter-than-normal waiting times indicate a drop in passenger numbers.
Meanwhile Gatwick, the UK's second largest airport, is also reporting business as usual but warned of delays later as international arrivals build up.
Scott Stanley, Gatwick Airport Chief Operating Officer said: 'Whilst passengers have so far not experienced delays at the border zones we do expect delays to occur at some point today as the rate of arriving flights increases.' EasyJet is Gatwick's biggest airline."
While we're on the subject of airports, here's a report from Rob Booth, our man in a sunny — and, apparently, uncongested — Heathrow.
Predictions of chaos at the Heathrow border control have been proved
seriously wrong, at least at Terminal 3. Passengers from Australia, Thailand, Nigeria and the USA have all been flowing through passport checks faster than usual, according to passengers and airport officials in arrivals.
Piles of bottles water, fruit and even nappies and baby food placed in the immigration hall in anticipation of eight to 10-hour delays have gone untouched.
Steve Morgan, normally in a suit and tie as BAA's director of capital
projects, had donned a purple fleece and a "here to help" badge to
cover the 4am to noon shift in the arrivals hall.
He didn't have much to do, and explained that a series of factors had eased the flow. He said he believed that the UK Border Agency had agreed with
authorities in the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Japan that
they would carry out thorough passport checks before boarding allowing
the replacement border staff at Heathrow to carry out faster face and
passport scan checks. BA and Virgin had cancelled some planes and
airlines had responded to calls to run lighter passenger loads.
¡Estamos con ustedes! A little YouTube union solidaridad from Nicaragua …
A ferry update from PA:
Passengers arriving at one of Britain's main gateways to the Continent faced apparently normal travel conditions today as union officials said they had huge support for their strike.
The Port of Dover in Kent said all services with P&O Ferries to Calais and DFDS Seaways sailings to Dunkirk were "running well and to time" this morning with space available.
There were no queues on roads leading into the port. Freight and car traffic boarding cross-Channel ferries were told not to expect delays on their outbound journeys but could face disruption on their return to Dover.
International solidarity, it seems, is not confined to Central America.
National Nurses United, the largest US nursing union, is standing shoulder-to-shoulder with its British counterparts. This from their press release:
[At noon today] at the embassy of the UK in DC … and at five other embassies and consulates around the country, nurses will picket and deliver a letter to stand in solidarity with nurses and public employees in Britain as they strike to protect their pensions.The nurses will be joined at the picket and rally by other allies to fight for the pensions and retirement security of the embattled workers in Great Britain."
We'll have a report on that action a little later.
Want to know more about the strike and the disruption it could cause? Here's a very useful FAQ on the subject. We'll also try to answer any other questions you may have.
A bit more from Dan Milmo on the transport end of things:
Given the amount of questions from readers on whether the tubes and trains will be running, it seems only fair to bring the RMT union's Bob Crow into our coverage.
The vast majority of his members are not affected by the pensions changes — they just aren't members of those schemes — so the rail, bus and London Underground networks are operating as normal.
However, RMT members who operate the Tyne & Wear Metro belong to the Local Government Pension Scheme, which is one of the schemes at the heart of the public sector dispute.
So the Tyne & Wear Metro is shut this morning and Crow will be attending a rally in Newcastle later.
This morning he said: "We are sending the clearest message to the government that we will defend our pensions to the hilt and the outrageous demand that our members should work longer, pay more and get less has been thrown back in the faces of this government of millionaire public schoolboys" — which should guarantee a Sun bus sitting in front of his house tomorrow morning.
Here's a video of the Guardian's John Harris talking to physios — and an occupational therapist — at Salisbury district hospital in Wiltshire.
This from Henry McDonald.
Kirsty McManus, assistant regional director at CBI Northern Ireland, has disputed suggestions that ordinary union members had backed the national strike in the province.
In a hard hitting attack on the unions she said:
It's really disappointing that this strike has gone ahead when some of the unions
involved haven't even managed to secure a clear mandate. The government should re-examine the case for strengthening the law to ensure strikes can only go ahead if 40% of the balloted workforce have voted in favour of action, as well as simple majority."
She added:
Not only is this strike a major headache for parents whose children's schools have closed, it will cost the economy dearly."
My colleague Hannah Waldram has put together a lovely storify of some of the best strike pics on Twitter.
Polly Curtis has been digging away at the ministerial suggestion that unions are striking today despite negotiations behind the scenes being "incessant". The unions say this is "not true" and the government has issued its final offer. Who is right? Find out over at our Reality Check.
John Harris, still in Salisbury, asks a teacher why he's striking
Court proceedings are expected to be disrupted by the strike today, according to union leaders. But a fair few judges, it seems, are backing the action.
Norina O'Hare, who represents the justice and prosecutions sector of the Public and Commercial Services Union, said picket lines were in place at courts across the country, including at the Old Bailey and the Royal Courts of Justice, which is also in central London and houses the High Court and Courts of Appeal.
She said:
"Union members who work in courts are taking action. We have picket lines at courts across the country, including the Bailey and the Royal Courts of Justice.
We expect to have an impact on the running of the courts. We anticipate significant disruption at the Royal Courts of Justice.
We've had a lot of support from judges, who are, of course, also public sector workers."
(Via PA)
Radiographers from the Royal Liverpool Hospital stand on a picket line Photograph: Christopher Furlong/Getty Images
Insert your own punchlines ...
Here's a snapshot of what's happening on the transport network, courtesy of PA:
• Some major roads in Tyne and Wear are jammed today, with queues on the A167 Tyne Bridge and slow-moving traffic on a number of other routes in the area.
• Eurostar has warned passengers travelling from Paris and Brussels to London to get to their departing station well ahead of time in case of delays, but added: "So far, everything is fine, with no delays or cancellations."
• Airport services in southern England seem to be unaffected, with flights at Luton airport in Bedfordshire and Stansted airport in Essex operating normally. There were also no delays at Manchester airport.
• The ferry company P&O reports no disruption to its Dover-Calais services.
It's all quiet on the Gatwick front, too.
The airport has received 57 inbound flights since 0520 carrying around 8,000 passengers. Passengers have been passing through the border zones as normal with no delay. All outbound flights are operating as normal.
Scott Stanley, Gatwick Airport Chief Operating Officer said:
We have just got through our first busy peak with no disruption to the inbound flights and no knock-on effect to the outbound flights. Arriving passengers have been processed safely through passport control as normal with no delays.
We will of course continue to keep a close eye on the situation and respond quickly and robustly should there be a build up of queues in the border zones today."
Kate Treacy, who teaches English at a state secondary in north London, has blogged here on why she is striking.
Teachers are constantly vilified as an inefficient and ineffective bunch, more interested in coasting to a comfortable retirement than unleashing the potential of the young talent of this country.
But I firmly believe that this campaign is not just about how well-off I will be in my autumn years. It's about fostering respect for our profession, it's about ensuring that teachers are valued …
Yes, Mr Cameron, industrial action will be disruptive, but then that's the point. It's time you all sat up and took notice of us. We really are that important."
An opinion poll commissioned by the BBC suggests that 61% of people support today's strikes. Our poll — over at CiF — suggests support is running closer to 80%. Why not vote?
This from Kirsty Scott in Glasgow:
By 9am, small huddles of pickets had gathered outside government and council offices across Glasgow. At the Department of Work and Pensions and passport office, at Northgate, Charlie Liddle struggled to make himself heard above the noise of drums and car horns.
"I think what the chancellor said yesterday just added fuel to the fire if anyone needed reminding of the contempt this government has for public sector workers," he said.
"The main reason we're here is that the government wants us to work longer, pay more and get less for our pensions."
Liddle said only 50 of the 1300 staff had turned up for work and those who had were mostly non-union staff — "the strike has about 99% support which is brilliant".
Round the corner, a second picket line was getting noisy support from the Coalition of Resistance who had chartered an open-top bus to visit key sites across the city.
Waving banners that read, "Young, angry and organised", and shouting slogans, the campaigners said they wanted to show their support to everyone who had been on strike today.
"We've got people on the bus from many different backgrounds. Students, the public sector, the private sector and the unemployed," said Gavin Lavery, 22, a maths student at Glasgow University.
"We just want to let people know that we support them."
Lavery said yesterday's statement from George Osborne had only strengthened their resolve.
"The question we should be asking today is why is George Osborne not resigning?"
Down at the city chambers in George Square, Billy Stewart, vice chair of Unison in Glasgow and a supervisor in the city council's management team, said: "I'm out here to protect our pensions. We want things to improve. If we lose this struggle everybody loses."
We're getting more and more submissions of strikes reports to our collaborative map - see the spread across the UK here:
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You can add details of any disruptions caused by strikes, or strikes action here
We're also getting some images in of strikers in action - with posters and placards. See this Flickr slideshow of some of our readers' images so far:
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Some strong words from the Unite general secretary, Len McCluskey, who is touring picket lines in London today:
The fight to protect public service pensions is the latest battle that working people and their families have had to mount to protect the social and economic advances that have been achieved since 1945.
But now working people are being asked to pay for the economic mess caused by the greedy City elite whose behaviour this spineless government has repeatedly failed to tackle.'
When Francis Maude, the government's lead pensions' negotiator, can receive a pension of £43,000-a-year, but nurses, teachers, dinner ladies, fire-fighters and librarians have to pay substantially more, work longer and receive less in real terms when they retire, the mantra of 'We are all in this together' has a very hollow and shabby ring.'
This is a government that will snatch at least 16 per cent of income from public sector workers by holding down their pay for four years – but leaves the banking tax at a paltry 0.08 per cent.
The action today has been a brilliant display of courage and concern by public servants who are being demonised by a government that has lost its moral compass."
Severin Carell has this from Edinburgh:
The veteran trade union leader Rodney Bickerstaff, former general secretary of Unison and a pivotal figure in the "winter of discontent" in the late 1970s, joined a picket line of nurses, lab workers and cleaners outside Edinburgh's Royal Infirmary, where the weather was bright but bitterly cold.
Before he left to join Scotland's main strike rally outside the Scottish parliament, he accused UK government ministers of being "armchair generals who are sacrificing their troops, men, women and children, over the top to try and fill the gap in the finances, created by their friends in the banks".
He said the strikers were forced into a one-day strike:
These aren't brave people; these are people who work day in, day out, they wipe noses and they wipe bottoms; they teach unruly kids, work with dustbins and sewage works.
These are services which civilise our society, yet we're saying to these people, 'It's alright for the bankers, we will give them billions of tax-payers money so their banks won't fail, but we don't mind hospitals failing, we don't mind families breaking apart under the stresses and strains of these economic stringencies. That's very sad, but we're looking after ourselves'."
Here's the latest statement from Francis Maude — the "inappropriate, untimely and irresponsible" line crops up again:
I want to thank the majority of dedicated and committed public sector workers who have turned up to work today to deliver essential services.
I can reassure the public that we are doing all that we can to keep essential services open. Our rigorous contingency planning is in place across all sectors to limit the impact of the strike action. Early indications show it is working well and that the majority of key public services remain open.
Today's strike is inappropriate, untimely and irresponsible, especially while talks are ongoing. Responsibility for any disruption which people may experience today lies squarely with union leaders.
Claims this morning that there are no negotiations going on are simply not true. There were formal discussions with the Civil Service unions only yesterday and there will be formal discussions with the teaching unions tomorrow and health on Friday. In addition, there are frequent informal contacts between the Government and the TUC. All of this underlines how indefensible today's strike is while these talks at scheme level are moving forward."
Unionist politicians have snubbed the public sector strikers by crossing a picket line at Stormont buildings this morning, reports Henry McDonald:
Assembly members from the Democratic Unionist and Ulster Unionist parties entered parliament despite the presence of demonstrators protesting otuside. Hardline Traditional Unionist Voice leader Jim Allister also crossed the picket line. But Sinn Fein and the SDLP have instructed their Assembly members not to go into parliament today in solidarity with the strikers."
East Londonlines is covering the London action including the latest from Dalston. ELL reporters are also feeding into our Twitter stream here.
n0tice, meanwhile, is covering the disruptions in Tyne and Wear.
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Four people have been arrested in London, according to the Met. A spokesman has just told us that two were arrested in Hackney on suspicion of assaulting a police officer, while two others were arrested on suspicion of carrying an offensive weapon (one in EC2; one in Marylebone).
My heroic colleague Peter Walker — who's on a day-off today — sends this dispatch from south London:
There was a large turnout of pickets outside the major King's College and
Maudsley hospitals in Camberwell, south London, with around 100 people
handing out badges and leaflets to passers-by by at three entrances.
In keeping with the wider demographic of the action, all but about two of the pickets were women. One woman standing outside the Maudsley, a leading psychiatric facility, who asked not to be named, said:
I'm a mental health community nurse, and with the job I do it's no small thing to go on strike even for a day. But I really feel we were given no option. Everyone thinks that."
What are people talking about below the blog? Here's a taste:
Sparebulb: All the kids are just playing in my local park … My mother is on strike and she works for a private hospital, but she just booked the day off as it is hard to to do a direct action as they sack you- she is with Unite. I am on strike, but then since I lost my job (private sector) at the begining of the collapse, I am on strike every day... I could go on, but the point is my grass-roots perception is there is a large element of private sector support for our public service workers.
HeedBlerk: Beautiful day here in Gateshead. Just off out to join the march across the Tyne. Loving the day off today and the chance to strike whilst it's still available to us. Yesterday's news showed the cuts aren't working, so the chancellor responds with even deeper cuts. This strike isn't just about the pensions. To me it's about highlighting what our priorities are as a nation.
tickctock: I am a teacher. I am not on strike today as I am on maternity leave but I would have been following my union and striking if I hadn't been.
CleggsPledge: I have been on a picket line this morning and the support from the passing public was massive. While there are always one or two passers by who tell you where you go, the amount of people offering support, especially from the private sector, was outstanding.
Reports of, erm, not much happening at Heathrow – to the delight of our commenter nocommentnc:
Thanks strikers! Just seen my wife off to Chicago from Heathrow. No queue at check-in or security, and the plane is 3/4 empty, so will be nice relaxed flight for her. Best departure ever!
And a great round up of the results in a number of polls from LV09:
• Evening Standard - Do you think Wednesday's strike by public sector workers is justified? Yes 32% No 68%
• BBC - Do you think Wednesday's strike by public sector workers is justified?
Yes 61% No 39%
• Guardian - Do you support the 30 November strikes? Yes 79.3% No 20.7%
• Daily Mail - Do you support the public sector strikes today? Yes 90% No 10%
Our video people have just swooped on a rally in Swindon:
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The immigration hall at Heathrow Terminal 3, writes Rob Booth, is about as quiet as a library:
Of the 44 UK Border Agency desks, 21 are manned and about half of those have no queue at all.
"Normally it is a long queue over here, but today it looks empty," said Irfan Sakhiani, an Indian arriving from Canada.
"I was expecting much worse that this from what I saw on the BBC," said another traveller. "The news was saying 12 hours delay."
Around 20 people queued to have their visas checked while EU nationals had no wait at all. Passengers from Canada, USA, Australia, New Zealand and Japan had their own fast channel which was running smoothly. It is understood that the UK Border Agency had negotiated with those countries to carry out thorough checks on departure to alleviate potential problems on arrival.
Our health correspondent, Denis Campbell, brings news that the health secretary, Andrew Lansley, has been talking to the media in an attempt to bolster one of the government's key arguments: that even after the coalition's planned changes, many public sector pensions will still be much more generous than private sector equivalents.
He has given two examples.
A healthcare assistant joins the NHS at 30 and retires at 68 on about £18,500. He's taken a four-year career break and for a while he worked part-time. He will have personally paid about £27,000 into his pension and would have a pension worth around £9,000 a year. If he
wanted a private pension of similar value, he would need to have invested in a fund of nearly a quarter of a million pounds.And a radiographer works in the NHS from the age of 23 and retires at 68. She was 40 when the new scheme is introduced and had two short career breaks and a period of part-time working. She will have made personal contributions to her pension of about £70,000, which would give her a pension worth around £16,000 a year. To get the same from a private pension, she would have needed to invest nearly half a million pounds."
The health unions may respond by claiming that Lansley is using
atypical examples. I have asked the Department of Health to clarify
how many NHS staff Lansley believe would still be better off with the
revamped public sector pensions — a few, some, most or all of them?
Teachers in Swindon — Mary-Ann Harris, Lottie Rowe and Emma Pickles — talk to John Harris at the Swindon rally. It's the first time they have gone on strike.
Many parts of the academic world are feeling the effects of today's industrial action, according to Jessica Shepherd, our education correspondent:
At least two universities — Sunderland and Strathclyde — have cancelled all classes on Wednesday, a move that will affect thousands of students.
Richmond upon Thames College, Blackburn College, Kingston College and City of Westminster College are closed to students.
Ian Bauckham, head of Bennett Memorial Diocesan School, a comprehensive in Kent, told the Guardian he had decided to keep his school partly open despite about 30 of his 85 teaching staff being out on strike. Pupils in the first four years of the school will have no lessons, but those in their last year of GCSEs will have to attend classes. Some A-level classes have been cancelled.
The school has offered to supervise children whose parents cannot find suitable childcare arrangements.
Bauckham said he understood why teachers were upset, but that conversations with parents showed they had mixed sympathy for those who were striking. "I think if the strikes are repeated, it will be damaging ... the public will lose patience," he said.
The author Toby Young, who established the West London Free school, said none of the teachers were on strike and the school was open as normal.
"It's a great tribute to their commitment to the school and the pupils under their care," he wrote on Twitter.
A commenter going by the name of RuthArcher (presumably not wife of David) has posted this tale from Leeds over on the politics live blog:
Health workers from a Leeds Hospital in Chapeltown, have just come off their picket line to help doctors and paramedics with a woman who was accidentally run over by a car. They are amazing everyday they help people for little reward, and it is not until you have a crisis that you see how amazing they are.
How many bankers whould help your sick child or elderly mum? We need to get a grip on our priorities.
Jessica Shepherd, the Guardian's education correspondent, has found out that the school where David Cameron and Michael Gove send their children, St Mary Abbotts primary school in Kensington and Chelsea, is partly closed. Two classes are open and five classes are closed.
Here's a new storify from my colleague Hannah Waldram:
This from my political colleague Helene Mullholland, who's been at No 10:
Downing Street gave an update on the impact of the strike on some public services at the morning briefing with journalists, though a clearer picture of turnout and the impact on services should emerge this afternoon.
The spokesman said a third of civil servants were out on strike. However, just 18 job centres had closed out of 900.
David Cameron was among the parents having to make alternate provisions because of school closures, with his son staying at a friend's house for the day.
The number of those turning out for work at border controls had been "better than expected", said the spokesman. Over at Downing Street, just a handful of staff had not turned up for work.
Cameron's official spokesman said the prime minister would praise public sector workers who ignored the strike call and went in to work.
The spokesman said Cameron regards the pension offer as "fair" to both public sector workers and taxpayers and believes it will deliver pensions which are "amongst the very best available", with some low-paid workers receiving more than under the current system.
Over at Downing Street, just a handful of staff had not turned up for work. No creche provisions were made for Downing Street staff affected by school closures. last week the prime minister told MPs that parents should be able to take their children to work if "safe" to do so, to minimise disruptions to their day.
Pete Smith, a rep for NUT Swindon, talks about what needs to happen next.
"We're facing a masssive, systematic assault on gains made by working people over 200 years. If that's the case, then today can't just be a protest strike … I think we need to step up our resistance. I think we need to take up the argument in our unions for more co-ordinated strike action."
Here's a bit more from Denis Campbell on why some GPs are not striking:
A planned strike today by a small number of GPs is not taking place because they were warned that they would be breaking the law if they withdrew their labour.
Family doctors belonging to the Medical Practitioners Union, which is part of the Unite union, had intended to offer patients only emergency services today — no planned appointments as usual — after their ballot for industrial action produced a 'yes' vote. To be clear: the MPU is a very small organisation. Its president, Ron Singer, can't give an exact figure for its total membership but says that it has "about 100 active members".
At the start of last week, Singer told the Press Association that he knew of "some practices that are intending to have emergency services only or will have periods of time (during working hours) to congregate outside with placards".
If that had happened, MPU members would have been the only doctors striking today, as the British Medical Association — which represents about two-thirds of the UK's medics — has not balloted for action over pensions, or not this time anyway.
However, Singer has just told me — from a march of strikers from east
London heading towards a rally in central London — that that action has not materialised.
Legal advice received by the MPU last Thursday warned them that GPs would be breaking the law if they downed stethoscopes, as it were, so the action — which would mainly have affected some surgeries in London, especially Tower Hamlets in east London — was called off.
"My members are willing [to strike today] but are not able to taking anything construed as taking industrial action," he said.
So what happened? "We had legal advice saying that GP members couldn't strike today because they hadn't given workplaces a week's notice,, he added.
But GPs are self-employed, and the workplaces that would have been
affected are their own surgeries. So does that mean that family
doctors in effect failed to notify themselves of the action, as the
law requires?
"Can self-employed people take industrial action? The answer is yes and no. The legal advice produced a little local difficulty. We will clarify the situation," said Singer, who plans to ask m'learned friends for further advice on this issue.
Unison have put out a statement condemning the Department of Health for planning to "fiddle" their figures in order to "play down" the number of health workers on strike.
The DoH's figures would not take into account the fact that doctors, RCN and RCM members were never going to go on strike today, the union said. According to Christina McAnea, UNISON Head of Health:
The DOH are so desperate to put down the success of the NHS strike, that they are planning on how best to fiddle the figures of how many workers are taking action. They should take account of the fact that large numbers of NHS staff are members of the RCN, RCM or are doctors, and they are not taking strike action. In addition UNISON members are providing emergency cover where it is needed.
However the DOH have stopped individual Trusts from showing the real picture and are simply asking them to say how many staff should be at work and how many are working today. This will give a completely false picture of the turnout.
That means any DOH figures should [be] disregarded because they will be inaccurate. They are designed from the start to hide the fact that members of UNISON have been supporting the strike in huge numbers right across the UK.
My colleague Severin Carrell has this update from north of the border.
As Alex Salmond crossed the Scottish parliament civil servants' picket line this morning, it emerged that one SNP MSP, John Finnie, had stayed in Inverness to support the strikers.
The SNP government has invited fierce union criticism for organising a parliamentary debate, on pensions, forcing its MSPs to attend and cross the picket lines.
Labour and Scottish Green MSPs are to boycott the debate by refusing to cross the picket lines.
It is believed to be the first time in the Scottish parliament's 12 year history that opposition parties have failed to attend.
And in Bristol, there is a holiday atmosphere, helped by bright blue skies, reports The Guardian's Steve Morris.
The unions believe 30,000 people across Bristol, South Gloucestershire and Bath. Big turn-outs on picket lines and for the main demonstration in the region.And, obviously, the city centre is jam-packed with children who would have been at school. The German market is doing a roaring trade and the Orchard Pig cider stall has put on a special 'Comrade' brew – mulled cider laced with vodka to warm the strikers up.
Many grandparents are clearly in charge today but there are a good few single dads and mums who have had to take time off work.
Not many of them seemed to mind, however. PA Georgia Brabham, who was in town with her 11-year-old Leem, said:
I basically support the strike...Public sector workers do a lot of good and they deserve our support. It's inconvenient but I don't mind for one day.
And, outside the Bristol Royal Infirmary, patient Allison Can was having a cigarette outside. Her gall bladder operation has been postponed, but she said she was in "discomort" rather than pain.
I think this strike is uncomfortable for a lot of people but I'm not against it. People have a right to make their point.
Spare a thought for Danny Hall, a magician employed by Gatwick Airport to entertain passengers who were delayed today. The 28-year-old is dismayed by the lack of trouble, telling PA:
I'd like a crowd. I thrive on the applause so trying to find an audience today has been more difficult than I thought it would be. People are getting their bags and moving straight on.
PA has more on the two arrests in Hackney this morning, also reporting that about 30 people have been detained in Dalston Lane in a separate incident.
Two protesters were detained after a female Police Community Support Officer was assaulted during clashes with strikers.
Scotland Yard said the officer was attacked as trouble flared at a bus garage in Hackney, east London.
The PCSO did not require hospital treatment but the two suspects remain in custody, the spokesman added.
About 30 people were also detained in nearby Dalston Lane to prevent a breach of the peace, the force said.
In addition, police said they have gained Section 60 stop and search powers in the Moorgate area of central London after receiving intelligence.
Despite police concerns of a breach of the peace, the Dalston arrests have left locals a little mystified, according to various posts on Twitter:
@N30Strike
Shocking scenes at Dalston "Cops just brought dogs in, kids who were with picketing parents are terrified, crying." #n30 #STRIKE@katybeale
Dalston CLR Library-100 Police, 6 dogs, 5 vans, and a coach, to arrest 20 people for having a soundsystem on the picket-line.@MissEllieMae
Apparently people are getting kettled and arrested in Dalston. No reports of anyone actually breaking the law, mind... #n30
My colleague Martin Wainwright has been speaking to NHS employees on strike in Leeds.
Most of them were strikers mostly from the bottom three bands of NHS salaried jobs. As they gathered in a local pub before a public meeting outside the town hall, they told him of their pension fears.
Maxine Berry, 39, an assistant in radiotherapy clinical trials, said:
It's a combination of having to work longer, pay more into the pension pot and survive on pay limited to the one percent rise between now and 2014 which inflation is turning into a pay cut.
For me, it all means something like another £400 a year in contributions, and my partner's unemployed – he's a project manager and hasn't yet found another job - so I'm the only earner. We're heading for poverty, now and in our old age.
A 42-year-old gardener, who said he earned just over £15,000 and had 20 years of pension payments behind him, said striking seemed to be the only way to get the desperation of the low-paid on to the agenda of the well-off.
They just don't have any idea of what it's like to live on pay like ours. We know that everyone is having a hard time at the moment, but hard times are harder when you've so little to fall back on.
It is not easy in Birmingham, where union leaders will shortly address a rally of 5,000 public sector workers at the National Indoor Arena, to find anyone who will express anything other than support for the striking workers, reports my colleague Esther Addley.
Small groups of union members, carrying flags or placards and blowing plastic vuvuzelas, have been gathering across the city since first thing
this morning, attracting enthusiastic toots and thumbs up from passing motorists and pedestrians.At City hospital, around 30 hospital porters, nurses, cleaners and paramedics staged a small picket line, several having brought their children to man the protest with them after schools shut.
Brendan Barber, the TUC general secretary, stopped by around 11.30 before
going to the rally."When [the government] try to divide you from the wider community, just
standing here and listening to all those cars tooting tells me that that
is going to fail," he told the workers, to cheers.Hospital cleaner Cheryl Burge, who earns around £7 an hour for 'really
physical work', said: "They want to come and do a day's work or a week's work before they talk to us about cutting our pensions. It just makes us
feel angry." She said she had already cut all but essentials from her food
bill and didn't know how she would pay the proposed pension contribution
increase.Leaving the hospital after an X ray, Siobhan Gorman said she feared the
strikers were: 'defeated before they begin' but that she supported them.
"It's great to see them out, because we live in a democracy and I think
you lose that right to speak out if you don't use it."
For many people in Gloucester, reports John Harris, this is the first strike of their lives.
And fireman Mike explains to John why he's participating in the day of action.
We've been inundated with your stories of today- why you have gone on strike, why you haven't, and what your feelings are in general about public sector pensions.
Here's a selection of your comments. Below the line, danceswithcats "hates striking" but feels it's justified today.
I'm an adult education tutor in a privatised public service and I pay a hundred pounds a month into the teachers' pension pot, from a part-time salary. It is a big payment to make, but it is worth it, as I am on low wages with not much chance of increasing my income from my job.I do not sacrifice that money to bail out George Osborne's buddie's speculative investment schemes. This line about 'all having to pull together and make sacrifices' rings hollow and offensive when it comes from a class of privileged parasites who are all intimately connected to the crooks who got us into this mess.
I hate striking...I like my job. I do it because it feels like something that is right to do and, after a long period of just working for money, I have finally settled on something I feel I am good at, but that doesn't mean I am going to be treated like an afterthought by a government whose first concern is for their own class's privilege.
Russell, meanwhile, has been in touch to explain that, while he is not striking today, he is "in complete agreement with the public sector" on the pension issue.
The main reason I am not striking is two-fold. Firstly, because I am not a member of a union, and so therefore i am unsure as to whether I can actually do it. Secondly, I have historically not agreed with the principal of striking. However, this issue is certainly the only that has ever made me think that I should strike.
I am in complete agreement with the public sector on this though; how can the increase in our payments being used to pay off debt created by the banking industry be justified? I, and many of my colleagues, are more than happy for pension reform; however, we are not happy for our wages...and let's not forget that this is where most of our pension money comes from...are being used to clear the debt that could be easily done in other ways (if only the tories would have the balls to create a tax system that is truly scalable).
Just over a quarter of Civil Servants have taken part in strike action today- around 135,000 people, the Cabinet Office says.
In a statement Francis Maude said:
Despite the best efforts of union bosses the United Kingdom remains open for business, in particular I am happy to say that the border is operating effectively with minimal disruption to those travelling today.
Union claims this morning that there were no negotiations going on are simply not true, he added.
There were formal discussions with the Civil Service unions only yesterday and there will be formal discussions with the teaching unions tomorrow and health on Friday. In addition, there are frequent informal contacts between the Government and the TUC. All of this underlines how indefensible today's strike is while these talks at scheme level are moving forward.
The capital's public sector workers have turned out en masse for a march in central London to express their anger, reports my colleague Helene Mulholland.
Young and old - many new to sacrificing a day's pay as a last resort - turned out to march in a bid to persuade the government to rethink its proposals. Members from 29 unions made up the throng. But also visible were flags representing unions who have yet to ballot, held by workers on their day off.
Deborah Tomlinson, a cancer nurse and member of the Royal College of Nursing, will not be affected by the the reforms because she is already 60. But she says the idea that a frontline nurse can keep working until 67 or 68 is not feasible.
I don't think it's possible for nurses to work on a busy ward when they are 67 or 68 and deliver the care patients deserve.
As the music blared and a helicopter whirred overhead, some said today was unlikely to be a one-off, reports Helene. John Saunders, from City University, said turnout from his university was 'the biggest we have ever had'.
John Harris has been chatting to some more strikers in Gloucester, this time teachers at Milestone special school Pam McGough, Steve Whittaker and Ann Marsden.
Their placard reads "Pay more + work longer + get less = burned out teachers."
A statement from the Met on those east London arrests earlier today:
[We] can confirm that 37 protestors detained in Dalston Lane, E8, this morning have now been arrested on suspicion of breach of the peace.
All 37 protestors are adults and a dog unit attended to support officers."
The strike hastags seem to have stopped trending in the Twitter top 10, replaced by Vybz Kartel, Kourtney Kardashian, Aidy Boothroyd, the start of December — and a certain Canadian pop sensation. O Bieber, o mores …
Steve Morris reports from Bristol on an unusual — if seasonal — protest march:
A group of perhaps a couple of hundred, many in Father Christmas hats, calling themselves Santa Uncut have just been marching through Bristol.
They are delivering hunks of coal to companies and institutions they believe have been "naughty" – Halifax, Vodafone, Barclays and Marks and Spencer.
Being shadowed closely by the police who are not letting them get into the banks and shops they are highlighting.
They've adapted some Christmas favourites and are singing them in front of their targets.
I'm dreaming of a fair pension/Just like the ones I used to know/Where the coffers glistened/and Mps might have listened/Before the bankers stole our dough."
And: "Ho Ho Ho, the cuts have got to go."
Good-natured, though some of the demonstrators – who are younger in general than those involved in the major marches earlier – are wearing their Santa hats over hoods and masking their faces. That's not a good look.
This press release has just reached us from Welsh Labour ministers:
As a government, we understand fully that with a two year pay freeze, rising fuel costs, inflation at 5%, and the threat of redundancy - public sector workers right across Wales are facing an extremely tough time at the moment.
We are particularly concerned about the impact the UK government's proposals will have on women - who make up the majority of low paid public sector workers. It is clear, they will bear the brunt of the proposed changes to public sector pensions and we do not believe this can be right.
Over recent days, the rhetoric emanating from UK government ministers, has not helped the situation and we believe this demonstrates an urgent need for them to reassess their approach to this dispute.
Today has proved that urgent action is now needed and we urge the UK government to get back to the negotiating table with a more imaginative set of proposals and a more positive attitude than has been the case to date."
Here's John Harris in Gloucester, chatting to Paul Kenny of the GMB.
Thousands of striking workers held court in the centre of Swansea today in a "massive show of strength", PA reports.
Unison officials put the turn-out for their city centre rally at "between 4,000 and 5,000 workers." The rally brought the city centre and surrounding roads to a standstill for a number of hours.
The mass rally began at the city's Guildhall and moved on to Castle Square one-and-a-half miles away. Shoppers applauded striking workers and shouted their support as the rally filed past the city's Christmas market.
Unison regional organiser Glyn Jones was quoted as saying:
We have had widespread support from everyone we met today and scabbing is tiny. This has been a massive show of strength.
People have had enough and feel very strongly about this. We will not give up. The Government will crack before we do.
It may well be difficult for our members. But their earnings are being attacked, their pensions are being attacked and wages frozen. Even when the freeze comes off, rises will be limited to one per cent at a time when utilities, food bills and rent are going up.
When it comes to a decision to strike, again we say to our members that the Government does not listen to us sitting around the table so it is going to have to be like this.
David Cameron's press secretary Gabby Bertin is helping to man border controls at Heathrow, according to Sky's Sophy Ridge.
The prime minister's spokesman said earlier that a "small number" of Downing Street staff had volunteered to help out at the borders. A "handful", meanwhile, had joined the strike action.
Nicaraguans aren't the only ones offering solidarity with the strikers from afar. Garment workers in Dhaka, Bangladesh, have also held a rally to support British workers.
War on Want have posted this photo of their partner charity the National Garment Workers' Federation at the demo.
My colleague Shiv Malik has been chatting to Jens Winton, an employee of the Met police's emergency calls centre in Lambeth who turned out to march today.
He's said that there has been a considerable strike turnout at Lambeth, meaning that around 80 officers are having to man the phone lines and dispatch emergency calls.He's also shown me a text from union members working at one of the other three 999 call centres in Hendon say they believe there's been over 80% turnout with 74 employees out on strike today from the morning shift.
Speaking about why they were striking, Winton said:
We're in solidarity with the whole need to preserve our pensions. If we don't stand up this time what's it going to be next year – everyone take a 5% cut in
our salary?We're sorry that the private sector isn't at the level of organisation that we have in the public sector. It's not a race to the bottom.
We understand that they'll be no more than four or five civilian staff on the early shift. Lots of police officers [will be taking over]. They're overtrained for the role and doing that rather than keeping the streets of London safe.
Marchers in London have have told the strike has proved "an outstanding success" by a union leader.
My colleague Helene Mulholland tweets:
PCS leader Mark Serwotka says strike "an outstanding success. "The ball is now in the government's court."
It's time for the Labour party to get off the fence and say they support the strike, London strike rally told
In Liverpool, picket lines have been in place outside the vast majority of public buildings, reports PA, while around 15,000 marched through the city centre.
The Old Haymarket in the city centre, where the Birkenhead Tunnel is located, was unusually quiet as the roadway under the River Mersey was closed for all but the emergency services.
As the strikers walked, sounding their whistles and horns, shoppers lined the pavements and office workers stood at their windows to offer applause and take photographs with their mobile phones.
At St George's Hall the crowds were addressed by union leaders. Peter Middleman, the north west regional secretary for the PCS union, said the unions had had "a fantastic turnout".
These people are gardeners, road sweepers, teachers, nurses, civil servants who are all coming together to say that they are not prepared to pay more, to work longer and to get less for their pensions.
Significantly for me, I'm struck by the number of private sector workers taking part in this march, applauding us, giving us messages of support. They recognise that this is not a private sector versus public sector debate, despite the best efforts of the Government.
About 40 protesters have attempted to occupy the central London headquarters of a mining company, my colleague Shiv Malik reports.
In a move presumably timed to coincide with the strikes, about 200 protesters from Occupy London gathered in Piccadilly Circus to march down to Panton House, where Xstrata and its chief executive Mick Davis is based.
Around 40 activists rushed inside the building and appeared to spread to all floors before police arrived and removed them from the premises, Shiv says. The entire occupation lasted around 20 minutes.
Reports on Twitter said the protesters managed to unfurl a banner proclaiming "power to the people". This picture shows the banner from the roof of Panton House.
The Department for Education has just sent out the updated figures on school closures, Jessica Shepherd reports. Out of 21,476 state schools in England, she says:
• 62% of schools are thought to have closed
• 16% of schools are thought to have remained open
• 14% of schools are thought to have been partly open
• The status of 85 of schools is unknown
Around 20,000 people have turned out to march and protest in Manchester, police have said.
Gathering in Whitworth Park to the south of the city centre, Paula Roe, senior vice president of the teaching union, NASUWT, told the rally:
Mr Cameron, we are the people of Britain, and for many of us today, this will be our first ever industrial action forced upon us by a Government paying a debt we did not cause.
Assistant Chief Constable Ian Hopkins of GMP, said:
An estimated 20,000 people have had their voices heard in a peaceful and legal way across the county and the fact we have not made a single arrest is testament to the way in which the protesters have conducted themselves.
Action in the north was not confined to Manchester. An estimated 200 people were involved in a protest in Oldham and up to 500 at each of the three other marches in Bury, Bolton and Wigan, PA reports.
A brief follow-up to the report on the occupation of Panton House in London.
PA is reporting that police sealed off the area around Panton Street and marched through the 200-300 protesters, to shouts of "Shame on you".
Protesters were "kettled" in the area outside Panton House, it adds.
Right now, for those of you who've been out in the cold today here's a brief round-up of what's been going on around the country.
• Up to two million public sector workers have downed tools across the country to protest against government plans to change their pension deal. 62% of schools have been closed and just over a quarter of civil servants have gone on strike. Courts, museums, libraries and jobcentres have been closed. Some hospital operations have been delayed.
• In English cities, tens of thousands of people attended rallies at which union leaders demanding the government think again on its policy. Around 20,000 turned out in Manchester, 15,000 in Liverpool, and around 5,000 in Birmingham. Thousands more flooded the streets in Bristol and Newcastle, while London saw the biggest turn-out at a march to Embankment. Up to 30,000 people attended.
• In Scotland, thousands attended a rally from Edinburgh Castle to the Scottish parliament. Thousands more turned out in Wales- with up to 5,000 in Swansea alone- and in Belfast.
• David Cameron said the strike was a "damp quib". At prime minister's questions, he said the government had made a "very reasonable, very fair offer to public sector workers". Francis Maude, the cabinet office minister, disputed the unions' claims that negotiations had ceased, saying they were "simply not true."
• Fears of huge disruption to services at airports proved unfounded. Arrivals and take-offs at Heathrow and Gatwick are said to have been largely unaffected with only a handful of cancellations of in-bound flights to Heathrow.
• The day has been largely trouble-free, barring the arrest of two people in east London after the alleged assault of a policewoman. 37 people were detained in a separate incident in Dalston for allegedly causing a breach of the peace, while police in central London removed around 40 protesters from a mining company's headquarters in Panton Street which they had been attempting to occupy.
My colleague Hannah Waldram has compiled this fabulous Storify account of how the day progressed.
London Ambulance Service is under "increased pressure", with 30% more 999 calls today than normal, according to NHS London. Some 42% of its staff are on strike.
Anne Rainsberry, deputy chief executive of NHS London, said:
The ambulance service is sending ambulances to the most seriously injured patients and those with life-threatening conditions.
However the increased demand for the service is creating considerable pressure on London Ambulance Service.
Calls are being prioritised by urgency to ensure paramedics reach patients with the most urgent need, and we are asking the public only to call an ambulance in an absolute emergency to ensure safe cover can be maintained in London.
The Metropolitan police has made 52 arrests in London today, and is in the process of making more, according to Commander Simon Bray.
Speaking in this video, he said that police in Panton Street were making additional arrests for aggravated trespass after the occupation of mining company Xstrata's offices.
The UK's most northerly protest took place today in Lerwick, on Shetland, my colleagues Severin Carrell and Kirsty Scott report.
But the main focus of Scotland's day of action, perhaps inevitably, became the parliament in Edinburgh.
More than 10,000 people were estimated by organisers to have joined the largest demonstration at Holyrood in the parliament's history, massing on the landscaped park outside the parliament.Union leaders castigated Alex Salmond and the Scottish government for staging a debate during the strike on public sector pensions; a debate designed, said ministers, to focus on the UK government's "cash grab" on public sector workers to meet the UK's deficit.
The first minister was met by a picket line outside Holyrood manned by parliament officials, clerks, and for the first time in their history, senior civil servants in the First Division Association.
Around Scotland, tens of thousands of teachers, nurses, civil servants and council workers took part in scores of rallies. 180,000 local council staff and teachers took strike action, closing nearly every school in Scotland and bringing council services to a halt. In total, up to 300,000 are estimated to have taken action.
In Glasgow, as an estimated 10,000 strikers marching through the city were greeted with spontaneous applause by shoppers and office workers lining the pavements. Local traders were doing brisk business in whistles at £1 each. Banners and t-shirts identified radiographers, nurses, teachers, physios, firefighters, students."The banks got bailed out, we got sold out," chanted the marchers.
Staff at Edinburgh castle and the Queen's residence at Holyrood palace, including the stonemasons, archivists with Historic Scotland, clerks at the court of session and high court, and civil servants at the Scottish government's headquarters were also out on picket lines, which started forming at 7am, more than an hour before dawn.
Two coaches have arrived at Panton Street and look set to remove protesters from outside the Xstrata headquarters, reports my colleague Shiv Malik.
While this could not be immediately confirmed, police have said they are making arrests for aggravated trespass after the stunt organised by Occupy London.
The group said Xstrata was targeted because its CEO, Mick Davis, was one of the highest paid chief executives in the FTSE 100.
Michael Gove, the education secretary, has said that today's action had had a "severe impact" on schools across the country.
Brandishing the Department of Education's earlier figures that showed 62% of state schools in England have been closed, with a further 3,351 (16%) only partially open, he said:
Industrial action, today, has had a severe impact on schools across the country and has caused disruption to children's schooling and to parents and employers. At the same time, we know that many dedicated professionals have worked hard to keep schools open where they could.
It has been almost impossible to get accurate figures today on the impact of the Day of Action on NHS services, reports my colleague Denis Campbell.
Neither the Department of Health (DH) nor the NHS Employers organisation have so far been able or willing to provide such detail. Most such information will not be released until tomorrow, even though NHS organisations have known for hours how many operations were cancelled this morning, for example.
The health union Unison are among those concerned that health secretary Andrew Lansley's department is seeking to restrict the information flow to help fit the government's narrative.
In the absence of hard information, though, here is a general statement the DH has been giving people like me who have been pressing for some actual figures about operations cancelled, outpatient clinics postponed, patient journeys that proved not possible and so forth.
Impact has been "patchy", they claim. They will apparently issue further details soon, but this may be just on the number of staff who did or did not turn up for work today.
A DH spokesman said:
The NHS has prepared for some staff going on strike today. Urgent and emergency cases are the priority, along with those whose care is essential and can't wait – such as kidney dialysis, maternity and some cancer treatments. But members of the public who had planned non-urgent operations or appointments could be inconvenienced.
The impact of today's strike action on patient services varies from hospital to hospital, depending on the mix of staff. The British Medical Association, the Royal College of Nursing and the Royal College of Midwives have not balloted to strike today. So although a minority of nurses are members of Unison and may be on strike, most doctors, nurses and midwives – the majority of frontline staff in the NHS – are expected to be at work today.
Although information is still coming in, the effects of the action are patchy. Many hospitals are telling us that they are dealing well with demand, and some have not had to cancel any planned surgery. The issue for others is that while they may have doctors, nurses and other frontline staff, they are having to reschedule non-urgent operations, appointments and tests because of shortages of support staff.
Danny Alexander has emerged as the key hate figure of the day in his native Scotland, according to my colleague Severin Carrell.
In Inverness, strikers wearing masks of the Lib Dem MP's face and carrying "swag bags" descended on the constituency offices of the chief secretary of the Treasury, protesting at his pensions "cash grab".
Rodney Bickerstaff, the veteran union leader and retired general secretary of Unison, won loud cheers from marchers in Edinburgh when he described Alexander- whose constituency is Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey- as "a prat" and "a traitor" for allying himself to the Tory party and the government's cut programme.
Interesting to see how the language of the Occupy movement has spread into maintream politics. Today in Belfast a trade union rally was told that the public sector was being sacrificed for the richest 1%.
As thousands of workers went on strike across Northern Ireland, PA reports, Peter Bunting, the assistant general secretary of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, told a rally outside Belfast city hall:
The public sector is being sacrificed in the name of an ideology which favours the 1%.
As of 4.30pm, the London Ambulance Service is "holding about 50 calls", PA reports.
This means around 50 people have requested an ambulance but the service has been unable to dispatch one.
Dr. Marco Hauptmeier, a lecturer at Cardiff Business School, has sent in this picture taken on the picket line outside the school.
For those whose Welsh is as bad as mine, the placard means "save our pension".
I've compiled this Storify account of the brief occupation of Panton House by Occupy London protesters today.
Many thanks to Shiv Malik for reporting from the scene.
Here's a collection of placards seen at today's marches. My personal favourite: Eric Pickles ate my pension.
And here you can read Martin Wainwright's full report from Leeds.
The Department of Health has released its estimate of how many health workers took part in today's strike- and the numbers are far smaller than those of the unions. PA reports:
The Department of Health said an estimated 79,000 workers were on strike in England. It represents approximately 14.5% of all staff in NHS trusts, foundation trusts, ambulance services and NHS Direct.
That figure is dramatically different from Unison's estimate of over 400,000 workers.
This is Ben Quinn joining Lizzy on the blog.
Shiv Malik has sent in an update from Panton Street in London, where activists from Occupy London targetted the central London headquarters of the mining company, Xstrata:
Around half an hour ago those who were being contained were let go one-by-one through a police cordon and had their photographs and personal details taken.
Those on the roof were arrested. The Met have a final confirmation which is that there were 21 arrests in and around Panton Street making a total of 75 for the day including offences of criminal damage, burglary, aggrevated trespass and police assault.
Ministers have been disputing the unions' claims that two million were involved in industrial action today.
The Guardian's Rajeev Syal has been looking at some of the figures put out by the government and other bodies and reports that sources claimed the figure was closer to one million.
A Cabinet Office spokesman said: "The figures we have show turnout was much lower than these claims and significantly less than the unions predicted.
In health, Civil Service and local government there were approx 900,000 people on strike. We do not have final figures for teachers."
Within the civil service, 146, 256 staff took part in strike action -less than a third of the total, according to the Cabinet Office.
Officials claimed that the border is still operating effectively with minimal disruption to those travelling today and only 14 out of over 900 job centres and benefit delivery offices were closed.
The Local Government Authority have reported that 32 per cent of local government staff in England and Wales were not at work– 670,000 out of a total of 2.1million.
"Although we do not have figures for the number of teachers on strike we can confirm that more schools were open than estimated, with 30% open or partially open," a spokesman said.
This is Lizzy again. As an erstwhile Paris-based journalist, I've been taking a look at some reaction to today's events from across the Channel. (Where, as we all know, they like a strike or three.)
News website Rue89 remarks that going on strike "is not insignificant for those who, across the Channel who are not used to it."
@yohanperrey also picks up on differing attitudes in the two countries, remarking that "England is on strike! How rare (compared to France)."
@LuxBox tweets: "General strike in England! It's going to rain sauerkraut!"
And @benjibousquet wrote:
Even if England is heading for its biggest strike in 30 years, there'll still be fewer people than were at the royal wedding.
Roving picket correspondent John Harris has filed his report on a day spent with strikers in south-west England. And, while some parts of the 'great British strike script' were followed to the letter, he writes, there was also a sadness to the day that belied a formulaic narrative.
What was fascinating...was that the day's abiding spirit was much more complicated than the usual blasts and counter-blasts suggested: defiant, for sure; occasionally, celebratory, as people took heart from the fact that a Labour movement long said to be on its uppers could still mount such a protest; but also slightly sad.Contrary to Michael Gove's silly characterisation of the strike's motivating instincts being reducible to militancy and the desire for a scrap, few people I spoke to seemed be joyously withdrawing their labour, let alone glorying in any kind of seditious fight. But their essential complaint seemed unanswerable enough: the simple unfairness of suddenly being required to 'work longer, pay more, and get less'.
Many of the people he spoke to were "strike rookies", he says, "still getting used to picket-line etiquette, and tentatively explaining the tangle of emotions and convictions that had brought them out."
24 year-old Megan Williams, called to withdraw her labour by that renowned Bolshevik front organisation the Chartered Society of Physiotherapists, said, "I feel terrible about being on strike.""But you put every ounce of yourself into your job, and you keep getting knockbacks, all the time. You're just not appreciated." She and three of her colleagues mentioned the endless expectation to deliver the same levels of service with dwindling numbers of staff, but repeatedly returned to the day's big issue. Among their other complaints, they explained, was the prospect of having to perform their jobs in their late sixties. "I just won't be as strong," she said. "Sliding people up and down beds, supporting them while they walk... I'm not sure you can do that when you're 67."
Ministers are preparing to take a more conciliatory tone with unions from tomorrow as they embark a series of meetings with union leaders, a senior Whitehall source has told my colleague Rajeev Syal.
The source said:
There is a feeling that we have bcome too polarised over the strike and the rhetoric has been ramped up. Now is the time to tone it down and come together and get on with the real wrk in negotiations.
Officials and ministers will meet union negotiators at a series of scheme meetings before Christmas to discuss pensions for workers in local government, health, education and the civil service.There will be no extra money, the source said, but there will be scope for movement over the distribution of money that has been allocated by the government.
The strike has happened, we need to put it on one side and move on.
My colleague Hannah Waldram has received large numbers of emails today from people who have gone on strike. Here's a selection:
From Jessica Wortley, primary school teacher
I went on strike to try and safeguard my future and the future of other teachers. The profession is being eroded and this will have a detrimental effect on the children. 67 year olds are not fit to teach.
I went on strike to protest at the governments treatment of every day workers, of women, of the poor. I went on strike to protest against the cuts to public services, to children's services, to charities. I went on strike to show I care, that I believe there is another way.
The march in Newcastle was amazing, the biggest I have ever seen outside of London. I am willing to strike again, and again and again. We have to look after and rebuild our communities, not tear them apart.
From Stuart:
I wasn't intending to strike, for the very sensible reasons that I didn't think it would achieve anything and that I didn't think it would gain any public support.
Then my conscience overtook my head. Public sector workers generally work hard for a low to average salary because they truly care for their service users, and they deserve a half-decent pension at the end of it.
This recession was caused by the greed of the banking industry and it is morally repugnant that public sector workers are being asked to pay for it. I found that I simply couldn't let it pass without raising my voice in protest.
From Hannah H, senior lecturer
I've been paying in to the TPS for the best part of 9 years, have taken maternity leave and gone back to work on an 80% contract as a senior lecturer in Art and Design at a University College in Birmingham.
Fractional roles are an increasing phenomenon in HE but you only pay into a pension based on days worked rather than years accrued, so my pension pot already looks a lot smaller than it should be!
My husband works in construction management and has only just started contributing to a private pension scheme. We have a 17 month old son, a mortgage, nursery fees to pay and no savings. My husband has just survived the 4th round of redundancies at work and with funding for the arts in HE cut by 100% next year I fear for my profession as well as my job.
I want to highlight the massive reduction in jobs and hours in HE, the marginalisation of the arts and its impact on employment, pensions and the wider creative and knowledge economies and the myth of the final salary as a 'golden goodbye'.
I will have to work until I'm 67 to pay off my mortgage, let alone draw my pension. This doesn't feel like a treat, it feels like a necessity. The notion that I will be paying more for a longer time for less money and a smaller lump sum doesn't impress me. I have no money left over each month to invest in my son's future – his 'trust fund' sits with a balance of £250 plus interest and is likely to do so until he is 18 and ready for university should he wish to go. Let's just hope he wants to study science as that may be the only choice left….
The goverment has again congratulated itself for "rigorous contingency planning" which it claims has enabled Britain to stay "open for business" despite the strikes.
In terms of numbers, it says that:
• Less than a third of civil servants- 146,256- took part in strike action today
• The average proportion of local government staff in England and Wales not in work today was 32 per cent. This equates to around 670,000 staff, out of a total of 2.1 million.
• 79,000 health-workers downed tools. This figure is fiercely disputed by Unison, which says that over 400,000 people went on strike.
This is Ben again. A public relations firm working for the mining company Xstrata have been in touch to query the statement put out earlier by Occupy London.
Activists said they had targeted Xstrata's offices in London "to highlight the fact that CEO Mick Davies was the highest compensated CEO of all the FTSE 100 companies in the last year, when his companies had losses and the economy collapsed. He received £18,426,105 for his efforts."
What is clear though is that Xstrata's annual report said Davis received a pay and free share package worth nearly £17.7m in the last financial year.
Health unions and the Department of Health (DH) are locked in a war of words tonight over the strikes' impact on the NHS, according to Guardian health correspondent Denis Campbell:
The DoH say just 79,000 health service personnel were not at work, some 4.5% of the total workforce at hospitals, ambulance services and NHS Direct in England. Nonsense, say the unions, who claim that 400,000 NHS staff took action.
Health secretary Andrew Lansley tonight claimed that while some services were disrupted, some hospitals saw little difference to normal.
"It is good news that the number of people striking in the NHS is lower than we anticipated. [The DH said last week it expected a 20% absence rate]," he said.
"I am pleased that so many NHS staff, amongst those in the unions that called for strikes, have decided to put patients first."
Christina McAnea, head of health at Unison, led the assault on Lansley's claims:
The DH was seeking to misrepresent the true impact of today's strikes by not factoring in the fact that members of the Royal College of Nursing, British Medical Association and Royal College of Midwives -- who between them constitute a big chunk of the NHS workforce -- had not balloted in the first place, and other staff were working as normal in order to provide emergency cover, she said. The DH's figures should be discounted, she said.
A full report by Robert Booth and Alan Travis about the impact of the strike at airports has just gone online here.
Colin Matthews, chief executive of BAA, claimed that the smooth running of immigration was a victory for the airport's strategy of co-operation with airlines, which reduced passenger numbers by about a third compared with a normal 30 November through running flights with fewer customers, and cancelling flights.
But he warned there could be a knock-on effect on Thursday when passengers arrive on alternative flights and there are forecasts of high winds. He was expecting Heathrow to be "extra busy".
The Guardian's industrial editor, Dan Milmo, has likened the choreography of industrial action to that of an election in this analysis piece:
As the crucial day nears the rhetoric increases and the boundaries of truth are strained. After all, for both sides, power is at stake. Like an employer in a private sector dispute, the government wants to grind out the "right to manage" and cut public spending without serious trade union opposition.
To lessen the impact of trade unions it must achieve two goals: overcome the consequences of their greatest weapon, the withdrawal of labour; and convince the electorate that its behaviour, and case for reform, is fair and reasonable.
The unions want to achieve broadly similar aims: prove that they have the power to make the government agree a deal on beneficial terms to their members; and convince those members, as well as would-be members, that their monthly subscriptions achieve something.
This matters even more in the wake of a singularly punitive autumn statement for public-sector workers.
Setting expectations is central to this, and both sides have been preparing the ground for months, with the process reaching an apex today.
Something of a reaction has been brewing on twitter to some characteristicly subtle comments earlier this evening by Jeremy Clarkson.
Giving his opinion on the strike during an appearance on BBC's The One Show, he said that those taking part should be "executed in front of their families".
"How dare they go on strike while they have these gilt edged pensions that are going to be guaranteed while the rest of us work for a living," he said.
If you feel the need, here's a link to a short snatch on youtube.
The BBC said in a statement: "The One Show apologised at the end of the show to viewers who may have been offended by Jeremy Clarkson's comments."
The Metropolitan police have been helping to take patients to hospital following a formal request for help from London's struggling ambulance service.
The city's ambulance service has been under "increased pressure", with 30% more 999 calls today than normal, according to NHS London. Some 42% of its staff are on strike.
The Met said in a statement: "Following today's industrial action, we can confirm that the London Ambulance Service (LAS) has made a formal request to the Metropolitan police, City of London and British Transport police to support them in responding to 999 emergency calls across London.
"Whilst the LAS will continue to deal with critical incidents where life is at risk, the police service have put in place measures to support the LAS in providing medical support and transporting medical staff where needed."
Commander Simon Pountain added: "I would reinforce the message that has gone out from the LAS that people should only ring for an ambulance where they feel that life is at risk. Where this is the case, people should continue to ring 999 and ask for the ambulance service in the normal way."
London Ambulance Service says it is still under severe pressure tonight and expects this to increase over the next few hours as a result of today's industrial action, the Press Association reports.
"There are still a number of patients who are waiting for an ambulance response and it is more important than ever for Londoners to only dial 999 for an ambulance if somebody's life is in danger," said the service's deputy director of operations Jason Killen.
"We have asked unions to encourage their members to return to work as normal or increase their emergency cover, as per the agreement with Unison and GMB."
Tomorrow's Guardian front page leads on the warning by a leading thinktank that high inflation, cuts and the longest period of wage stagnation on record will see the spending power of the average British family plummet over the next five years.
Phillip Inman and Katie Allen report:
An Institute for Fiscal Studies analysis predicted that average incomes, adjusted for inflation, will fall by 3% this year and further in 2012.
IFS director, Paul Johnson, said: "In the period 2009-10 to 2012-13m, real median household incomes will drop by a whopping 7.4% – a record matched only by the falls seen between 1974 and 1977."
As up to two million public sector workers walked out in protest against changes to their pensions, and signs emerged of a potentially damaging rift within the Liberal Democrats in the wake of George Osborne's autumn statement, the thinktank warned that families with children will be worse off in 2016 than they were 14 years earlier as they cope with more than a decade of austerity.
Not since the Callaghan government of the mid-70s have families come near to suffering a similar loss of income as the one now predicted to hit Britain over the next five years, the IFS said.
Lower income groups, it confirmed, will bear the brunt of the government's latest cuts, outlined by George Osborne on Tuesday. The chancellor's autumn statement signalled that the deteriorating economic outlook meant that there would be two more years of austerity than originally planned in his March budget.
Some more front pages now, with thanks to BBC Radio 4's Nick Sutton.
The Daily Telegraph: "It's official: credit crunch is back"
The i: "Cameron's bid to break strikers"
The Independent: "The rich get richer and the poor get poorer"
Here is another taste of what people are talking about below the blog:
StringerBell: So, the coward Clarkson would like to have us all shot. Spoken like a true Murdoch-brown-nosing fascist. Why doesn't he come and do it himself. All mouth and clearly no trousers.
Tuxedojunction: If we could agree that the term 'gold-plated' is irrelevant and disingenuous in this debate, we could start to get an understanding of what this is all about. It's a really insulting term for most public sector workers, many of whom (ie care workers) are not at all well off.
RobLindsay: I work in the private sector, I haven't had a pay rise in several years and can't afford to contribute to a pension and here are people having a whinge because their taxpayer funded pension is being reduced. I have no sympathy for them
SteveMcQueen: Public sector strikes are a joke. These people are from a generation that benefitted from free University education and maintenance grants. There are young people with no jobs who wont get pensions who are having to pay off the debt that this generation created.
Upbeet: Totally support the strikes. Given Ed miliband's total lack of balls regarding this is it not time the Unions seriously considered removing financial support for the party. Ed's completely misjudged the mood right now.
Jeremy Clarkson's comments on the One Show continues to be chewed over on twitter.
Richard Murphy asks:
Is Jeremy Clarkson guilty of incitement to violence? If not, why not? And if he is, will he be prosecuted?
Alex Massie also asks:
Jeremy Clarkson is a muckle tube. Everyone knows this, right? So no need to bang on about him on twitter, right?
Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude has told Jeremy Paxman on BBC Newsnight that the government's agenda is "about having sustainable public sector pensions in the future".
Paxman suggests that the baseline of what the government is that we have all got to accept that life is going to get a lot worse.
"Life is going to be tough. We inherited a massive budget deficit," replies Maude.
He adds that he ultimately wants to see very good pensions for those working in the public sector.
Mark Serwotka, general secretary of the Public and Commercial Services Union, has now joined Paxman and Maude on Newsnight.
"I don't buy in to the notion in the sixth biggest economy in the world that if you all live longer you must work until you drop," he says.
Paxman is challenging him on the unions' statement that two million people came out on strike today. Serwotka describes the government's alternative figures as "laughable".
"What don't you put your pride aside, come to the negotiating table and you might actually find there is something of benefit there if you take the blinkers off?" says Maude to Serwotka, as the discussion ends how it started, with claim and counter-claim.
Some more front pages from tomorrow now (via BBC Radio 4's Nick Sutton):
The Times: "Banks move to avert second credit crunch"
The Daily Mail: "Day the world's banks wobbled"
The Daily Express: "Simple way to fight off dementia"
The Sun: "The not very General Strike"
At the end of a day when Britain experiences its largest strike for three decades we are now going to wrap up the blog. Here is a summary of developments from today:
• Trade unions have said that up to two million public sector workers walked out in protest today against changes to their pensions.
Thousands of hospital operations were postponed and about two thirds of state schools shut. In other sectors, the transport network suffered little disruption however.
Brendan Barber, general secretary of the TUC, said the public sector was "absolutely under attack" by the government, adding that the time had come "to make a stand".
• The prime minister, David Cameron, described the unions' day of action as "a damp squib" and told the House of Commons that support among public sector workers had been far from universal.
After the government announced public sector pay raises will be limited to 1 percent through 2014 even as inflation now runs about 5 percent, he insisted that "as people live longer it's only right and only fair that you should make greater contributions."
• Mark Serwokta, the leader of the Public and Commercial Services union, warned that the "ball is in now in the government court" over public sector pensions and warned that further industrial action would take place if ministers failed to make further concessions.
The coalition has said that an improved offer tabled on 2 November could be withdrawn if negotiations are not concluded by the end of the year.
• Late in the evening, police in London were called in to help ambulances attend emergencies after thousands of NHS workers went on strike.
Some 42% of London Ambulance Service's staff went on strike and NHS London strategic health authority said the service had received 30% more 999 calls than normal.
• High inflation, cuts and the longest period of wage stagnation on record will see the spending power of the average British family plummet over the next five years, a leading thinktank has warned.
An Institute for Fiscal Studies analysis predicted that average incomes, adjusted for inflation, will fall by 3% this year and further in 2012.
Comments
30 November 2011 7:33AM
I support the strikers!
30 November 2011 7:33AM
In Fulham Rubbish is still being collected - thats the private sector for you!
30 November 2011 7:36AM
While none of our political parties are prepared to back the strike I'm sure the majority of the nation does. Fair play to everyone out today.
30 November 2011 7:39AM
Why dont the unions hit the private tax payer with a compromise? A good one might be public sector pensions floor of £10,000 pa (for a full life times service, in exchange of a public sector pensions cap of £35,000.) No, why? Because 10,000s of ex public sector workers are on more than this a year. Averages are a nonsence, this fact remains this is unacceptable to the tax generating work force its equivlent to £1m pension pots. Pensions should be roughtly 25% of base salary but in the public sector it's 50-60%.
Taken from the TPA website:
Key Benefits
Your employer makes a substantial contribution towards the cost of your pension.
The TPS not only provides you with a regular income after you retire, but also
i.e the tax payer.....
30 November 2011 7:39AM
Rubbish! 99.99% of the private sector dont back you.
30 November 2011 7:41AM
When the union's inspiration through the workers' blood shall run,
There can be no power greater anywhere beneath the sun;
Yet what force on earth is weaker than the feeble strength of one,
But the union makes us strong.
Solidarity forever,
Solidarity forever,
Solidarity forever,
For the union makes us strong.
Is there aught we hold in common with the greedy parasite,
Who would lash us into serfdom and would crush us with his might?
Is there anything left to us but to organize and fight?
For the union makes us strong.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E7NPuK_QhEk
30 November 2011 7:42AM
Jail the union bosses.
30 November 2011 7:45AM
Morning all, expecting a lively thread here today. Incidentally if you know of any strike action taking place in your area please do fill out the form on this page to help us map the day of protest. This will help us create this map here.
Did anyone here the talk around 6.30-7am on R4 - Tom McPhail talking about pension changes in the Autumn speech yesterday and then later an analysis of the strikes today so far - some interesting clips from walkouts at midnight in Bristol. Be interested to hear your thoughts.
30 November 2011 7:47AM
Fulhamite
Of course there's absolutely no way you just randomly made up this figure and presented it as fact. Are you behind the government 20 - 40% scaremongering overestimates of schools closures as well?
30 November 2011 7:48AM
Morning All
I support the strikers....er, that's it.
Catch you later
30 November 2011 7:49AM
Good for them.
30 November 2011 7:49AM
I think there would be more backing for this strike from the "general public" (what a terrible phrase), if the unions were seen to be caring about private sector pensions (or the lack of them).
I'm a private sector employee with no personal pension, and I'm largely ambivalent about today's strikes. It's all about protecting what is yours, and I'm sure if I was a unionised member of the public services, I'd be annoyed about what's going on and want to strike too.
30 November 2011 7:53AM
The BBC (Broadcast By Conservatives).
They're so impartial.
30 November 2011 7:54AM
In terms of public support for the strikes - seen the poll results on politcalbetting.com - 12% think they will be affected by the strikes and only 4% of private sector workers claim to know a lot about why the strikes are happening.
Any other good links out there?
30 November 2011 7:56AM
Funny that over at the Telegraph they think the BBC broadcasts nothing but leftie propaganda.
Maybe a sign that they're getting their coverage about right?
30 November 2011 7:56AM
Disappointed that millions of people with jobs and pensions are going on strike when there are hundreds of thousands who have neither.
Disappointed that job centres will be closed when people are at their wits ends trying to find work, but can't even try today because others with jobs are refusing to do them.
If you are hiding under your duvet enjoying a fully-paid day off work I hope you feel a pang of guilt about it. Maybe even get into work and do your part to help the recovery?
As for union bullies who shout scab at anyone daring to do their proper day of work, shame on you. Please don't shout at people because they don't agree with you and make their lives a misery.
As a nation we should be happy and glad that we live a healthy and productive life for longer, and as such can work for longer. Not kicking up a fuss because we can't enjoy those extra years getting money without doing any work.
30 November 2011 7:56AM
Public sector workers pay tax as well. Also their pension scheme is self financing, meaning their pension contribution is deducted from their already agreed wage packet, so this money going to the pension is not yours or the governments or the "taxpayers" it is out of the employees wages. This mythical 'taxpayer' (every single person in this society pays tax, even if its just VAT) does not have to top up any pension contributions. All these public sector workers have signed contracts with their employers, with agreed retirement ages, agreed pension contributions and an agreed pension payout. All of which is being ripped up and if that isn't worth striking over I don't know what is.
30 November 2011 7:59AM
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30 November 2011 8:00AM
ThinkMcFlyThink
Just quickly scroll up to the photo at the top of this blog and look at the placard on the right. It reads: 'Fair Pensions FOR ALL'. That is not a minority view held by an interloper.
30 November 2011 8:00AM
You have to laugh. The Government gave everyone a paid day off for the Royal wedding and that didn't cost a penny, but a day of strike action (unpaid) will cost the economy £500m. I don't understand!
30 November 2011 8:01AM
I don't see why just because the private sector is unable to provide decent pension provisions (with the exception of the Fat-Cat bosses), why it is right to take the public sector workers down to their level.
Surely if the private sector was run competently it should be able to provide the best pensions?
30 November 2011 8:03AM
I don't!
30 November 2011 8:04AM
Ed Balls saying on BBC News this morning that David Cameron had privately told the Telegraph earlier this year that he was looking for confrontation with the Unions, that he wanted them to 'fall into the trap'. And that Cameron and Osborne were both wanting this.
What does this tell us about our Government? Nasty, divisive, and that they don't give a toss about low-paid workers. I've read so many comments about how Government wants to drive down pay and conditions of Public Sector workers to make it easier to Privatise off, have to say, I now think it is true.
As I said before, myself and many like me will end up being forced out of our pensions schemes, and now it looks like our jobs too. I don't see that as a benefit to the tax-payer or the Country in the long run how ever you look at it
30 November 2011 8:05AM
Glad to hear it.
I think there's definitely a perception problem. Why don't more private sector employees unionise? Why aren't the unions actively trying to get more private sector member?
Maybe they are, but I don't know about it. If that is the case, why don't I know about it?
30 November 2011 8:07AM
Yes that should've been 'hear' not 'here'. Well spotted *dashes for first coffee of the day*.
Of course we want to hear from those who aren't striking today - why not and what brought you to this decision? Are there any divisions in the workplace?
We had a great live webchat about why some people are striking and others aren't on Monday - and you can see some of the best responses here.
If you'd like to explain in detail why you are striking/not striking - and are happy for this to be included in the live blog please drop me an email hannah.waldram@guardian.co.uk.
Thanks.
30 November 2011 8:09AM
- do you think that was the reason for some of the announcements and provocation yesterday in the Commons? Do you agree with that view?
30 November 2011 8:10AM
The response of the Labour Party to the strike is disgraceful. The party was set up to give political representation to working people in parliament. By refusing to support this completely justifiable action they have failed in their duty and have driven opposition to this government onto the streets. Wake up Ed!
30 November 2011 8:12AM
As the mean average public sector pension is around 7000 and the median below 5000, I'd imagine public sector workers would take that deal.
30 November 2011 8:14AM
So join a bloody union, get together with your workmates and fight back. It's not easy or glamorous, but any rights we have as workers are testament to the millions before who took action collectively to improve their lives and the lives of their children.
30 November 2011 8:16AM
Having worked in the private sector for 15 years i know a lot of people that work there.
I know 1 that disagrees with the strikes, but still agrees that it is unfair (she gets a very handsome private pension)
Of course there will be lots of people that fall for the governments plan of directing any anger at the public sector,as long as you are angry at immigrants, benefit scroungers, Gordon Brown then you are not angry at them.
30 November 2011 8:17AM
@Fulhamite
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-15910618
30 November 2011 8:18AM
I'm not striking today because I work in the private sector and my company would go bust if we were to strike. Then I'd have no job and my family would suffer.
The left wing Union bosses want to take on the Government because they are Tories. Complete madness.
30 November 2011 8:25AM
George Osborne on the today programme now. Being asked if he has any sympathy for the public sector protesters. Pretty bland response - talks about producing a report on things like pensions. Now trying to say even Labour thinks it's a good deal - "It's a fair deal for the public sector and the public". Ends on "I sympathise with the entire country".
30 November 2011 8:26AM
Private sector electricians have been striking recently as are private sector Unilever employees. Are you sure you aren't striking because you are actually happy with the deal you get?
I'm not striking for pretty much the same reason (half my department is currently on holiday), yet I support the strikes 100%. I'm taking a long lunch to go and spend some time at my local picket though.
30 November 2011 8:28AM
I don't work in the public sector and so won't be striking, but I do use and value the nations infrastructure so fully support those making a stand to protect it. I suspect there's more than 0.001 pc like me....
30 November 2011 8:30AM
When will people just accept the fact that you're going to get fucked by the government regardless of whether you go on strike or not.
The cabinet is full of millionaires who couldn't give a toss about the plebs.
30 November 2011 8:31AM
Morning, self employed bloke here fully in support of the strikers and proud of my previously Tory voting brother (he's learned his lesson) out on the picket lines today in front of his school.
30 November 2011 8:31AM
@jmbonnett - striking workers don't get paid for their days on strike. This is a common misconception, but one one that does considerable damage to support for striking in general.
30 November 2011 8:32AM
Fair pensions for all! We are striking for the many poor not the rich - who is looking after them? The government?
State your side and then we'll see who is doing what for the poor and unemployed.
The government and banks that people are striking against are largely responsible for the lack of jobs in the first place. Just do a bit of economic research.
You lose a days pay for striking. Some have been up since 12am to man picket lines. Maybe you should just shut your mouth and allow people to have an opinion on how they and the wider public are being treated. They are sticking up for services for the public.
Yet you feel the urge to try and make people guilty. Your not a scab. Your a manipulator and the only pang i feel is that of sympathy that you are so far up this governments arse that you can't see that they are taxing the public sector and calling it an invest.
Many of the poor and unemployed that you seemed to care about at the beginning of your rant have a healthy and happy lives because of our excellent public services and the third sector. Many are happy to work longer and pay more but not work longer,pay more and get significantly less - and of course this cowardly government didn't even have the guts to admit it was cut they lied it is disingenuous and a corrupt act of government.
If you can't see all of this then i pity you. but for now jog on......
30 November 2011 8:32AM
Of course, one of the few public sector workers who won't be seeing any change to their pension arrangements is George Osborne.
Shouldn't MPs pensions be the first to be "reformed"? They're among the least "affordable".
30 November 2011 8:33AM
Hear Hear lets bring the country to its knees!
30 November 2011 8:35AM
The whole concept of the “mass strike” defeats common sense, not that I don’t have some sympathy with the principals behind it. However, one of the reasons for our demise is that we had a public pension purse that was hemorrhaging – more was going out than coming in. We must acknowledge that the Government Employee who is paying for that pension, but also the Tax Payer. Over a period of time, the Government Employee Pay Roll has expended far beyond that which any Government could reasonably be expected to provide very healthy and generous pensions – something had to go! If the money is not there, then you can’t have it! It is not reasonable to expect the Tax Payer to fork out more – be that Tax Payer from Commerce and Industry or our Residents. Take that line and they will all emigrate and then the Pensioner will be back in a worse position. So, what will this strike achieve – absolutely nothing, other than to waste more money!
You elected those past Governments, therefore in part you have to share the blame!
30 November 2011 8:36AM
Fair play Theskysgoneout!
30 November 2011 8:36AM
Given the massive revisions the government is making to it's figures, announced just yesterday, why are we even trusting their assessments of what is affordable or not?
30 November 2011 8:36AM
Your already on your knees...........it seems
30 November 2011 8:38AM
Bit of a common misconception about strike action. Also seen people asking whether it's illegal to strike and whether you can strike if you're unemployed. We've got more on this in our news story here. But appreciate your clarity on this.
30 November 2011 8:41AM
...and you'll be paying out for their old age benefit top ups when they retire on low or non existent private sector pensions. Have you thought about that in your attack on public sector workers ?
I support the strike, and hope private sector workers realise they should demand the right to a decent pension more dignified old age too.
30 November 2011 8:42AM
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30 November 2011 8:43AM
whether you can strike if you're unemployed? Really? Jesus Christ people...
30 November 2011 8:43AM
hrwaldram
Yes, that's it precisely. I support my colleagues but I'm not on strike today because I believe it has been a trap all along and the unions have walked straight into it. Osborne's latest announcements yesterday show clearly that the "coalition" isn't in the slightest bit concerned about strikes - they are Thatcher's children and they hate us all.
What to do about it? Well, the British public has no appetite for a radical change of political or economic system so there isn't much to work with. What we can do is reduce the profits of the multinationals by forming local collectives for produce etc. and using credit unions instead of banks.
Of course, these things are not so easy to organise and stick to.