But his departure comes after a row in the shadow cabinet over Sir Keir’s position on strikes. The Telegraph understands that at least one shadow cabinet minister has privately told the Labor leader that shadow ministers should be allowed to picket and pointed to the party’s history as the political arm of the trade union movement. Mick Lynch, the general secretary of the RMT union, accused Sir Keir of abandoning working-class voters and getting himself into a “pickle” over the strikes, which forced the closure of much of UK rail services on Wednesday. “Most of the Labor MPs want to support us instinctively and naturally because they come from the trade union movement, every single one of them,” he told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme. He added that Sir Keir should “work out a set of principles and policies that appeal to working class people in all those communities that Labor lost at the last election”.
“Proud to stand with these striking railroad workers”
In a statement, Mr Tarry said he was “proud to stand with these striking rail workers on the picket line in the face of relentless attacks by this Tory government”. “It has been a privilege to serve on the Labor front for the past two years and to have the opportunity to speak up for hard-pressed workers who deserve much better than the treatment they have received from this corrupt and out-of-touch government,” he said. “I remain committed to supporting striking rail workers and campaigning for a Labor victory at the next general election, which I will fight relentlessly from the backbenches.” On Wednesday afternoon, Ms. Rayner tweeted her support for the striking workers ahead of Mr. Tarry’s firing.
