In his letter to Tony Blair, Prospect general secretary Paul Noon said:

"We were surprised and disappointed that government ministers were unable to sanction the draft agreement between the FBU and the employers last Friday morning.

"We noted in particular the movement made by the FBU on their pay claim and also the extent to which the FBU was prepared to commit itself to modernisation with binding adjudication on outstanding modernisation issues.

As you know, Prospect represents more than 105,000 members across the public and private sectors. We fully recognise the responsibility that the government has for public finances and the need to maintain a strong, stable economy.

In our view, however, the FBU has shown flexibility in its position on pay and has committed itself to modernisation as urged by the Deputy Prime Minister in his Commons statement last Thursday.

We urge the government to allow a resolution of this dispute on the basis of the draft agreement."


Prospect members: you can read the full text of the letter, along with a letter of support to the FBU and a circular to branches, in our document library. You will need to log in first.