East Devon MP Simon Jupp, whose constituency includes Exmouth, has said that rail strikes happening this week are 'unacceptable' and 'cannot happen again'.

His comments come amid three days of national rail strikes by the RMT union in a dispute over pay and working conditions.

There are no trains operating on the Avocet Line (between Exmouth and Exeter) on strike days this week, and significantly reduced services across the country. The first strike day was Tuesday 21 June, the second today, Thursday 23 June, and the final strike day will be Saturday 25 June. Friday will also see disruption with roughly one train per hour to and from Exmouth and no trains before 7am.

Simon Jupp MP is opposing the strike action - and said he will be 'pressing the case for legislation requiring minimum service levels on the railway network.'

He said in a statement: "I'm concerned by the potential for this large-scale industrial action to continue over the summer, disrupting vital services, NHS appointments, and GCSE exams.

"The government cannot support union demands for pay increases of 11%. As we know, there's no such thing as government money – it's your money. Despite £16 billion of emergency subsidy during the pandemic, the reforms necessary to make further funding sustainable are being blocked by militant unions.

"This is a staggering level of disruption – triggered by the unreasonable demands of left-wing unions and supported by the Labour Party. It cannot happen again. I sit on the Transport Select Committee, and I will be pressing the case for legislation requiring minimum service levels on the railway network."

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