Thank you for contacting me about the ongoing industrial dispute and to support the CWU members in both BT and Openreach.

Firstly I want to make it clear that myself and my Labour colleagues unequivocally support workers’ right to strike to improve their pay and conditions, and we understand the strength of feeling among BT and Openreach staff struggling to pay their bills.

Like you I was utterly appalled to read that BT’s CEO was given a 32% pay rise, during a time when everyone is facing the real world impacts of the cost of living crisis.

Therefore Labour have urged BT management to negotiate with the CWU and try to resolve the dispute, and for Tory Ministers to do their own jobs and step in.

Likewise Angela Rayner, Deputy Leader and Shadow Secretary of State for the Future of Work, and Lucy Powell, Shadow Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, met with the CWU General Secretary Dave Ward and Deputy General Secretary (Telecoms) Andy Kerr at the start of the week, and expressed their support for the workers suffering under the Tories’ cost of living crisis.

It is completely unacceptable that BT’s CEO is refusing to meet with the union. Despite this worrying situation, Tory Ministers are refusing to act, in exactly the same way Grant Shapps failed to step up and show real leadership over the RMT strikes, once again this Government has chosen to wash their hands of any responsibility.

The only way for this dispute to be resolved is via negotiation and getting all parties, including the Government, around the table. Their refusal is a grave dereliction of his duty and represents a catastrophic failure of leadership.

Their failure to act has far reaching consequences, the Government owes a duty not only to the BT and Openreach workers who kept Britain going during the pandemic but also to businesses and customers who need to be able to work from home, and the wider public who desperately need the full-fibre broadband rollout which needs the skill and dedication of the BT workforce.

It is important to remember that these strikes are happening in the context of a cost of living crisis. How can it be right that in just 15 months BT has made £1.7bn profit, yet only 5% went to frontline workers pay.

The truth is that Tory failure to tackle the cost-of-living crisis means food, energy and petrol costs are soaring for working people. Twelve years of Conservative mismanagement has left us with a weak economy and record falls in real pay.

We need to ensure this crisis isn’t reproduced, therefore I believe we need fundamental reform. Labour has a plan to grow the economy, transform workers’ rights, secure fair pay and deliver better working conditions. As a pro-worker and pro-business party, it is up to Labour to keep holding the Government to account while the country suffers because of its inaction.

Thank you again for writing to me about this very important matter and I can assure you that I will continue to support workers across the country and fight for fair pay and support during this cost of living crisis.