Northumberland Labour says the government should get round the table and find a way to end the strikes.

Councillor Anna Watson said: “No one wants to strike; it is a last resort but an absolute right that workers must be able to exercise if they think their employer or the government aren’t listening.

“The industrial unrest right across many sectors in our country is a cauldron that’s been threatening to boil over. You cannot keep stripping away people’s incomes, terms and conditions and job security without this happening as a result. People have had enough.

“Even more sickening is hearing how the few hundred richest people in the country have become multi billionaires while ordinary people can’t afford to put food on the table or heat their homes. Something has gone wrong with the principles of paying people a fair wage for a fair day’s work when teachers and nurses are going to food banks.

“And what do we hear? Workers, who provide the real wealth in our economy, being blamed for striking when in reality the fault lies at the door of the government which has failed working people in our country; a government which has stood in the way on negotiations which could have resolved these disputes long before now.

“A future Labour government will bring in a New Deal for Working People and will build a stronger, fairer economy by boosting wages, creating a stronger and more inclusive labour market and a partnership between government, business and trade unions to ensure work is decent, secure and fair for all.

“The government should stop bashing working people and get round the table.”