No 10 defends above-inflation rise for pensioners but not public sector workers – as it happened

Boris Johnson leads a cabinet meeting as national rail strikes begin. Photograph: Carl Court/Getty Images

6.01pm BST

Afternoon summary

• The RMT has said it will resume talks with rail management tomorrow. But commuters face certain disruption again on Thursday, when the next national strike is scheduled, because of the extent to which services and timetables have already been upended. There is full coverage of today’s strike - the biggest for more than 30 years - and its impact in our rail strikes live blog.

• Boris Johnson has signalled that the government is not minded to give in to the RMT’s demands, telling cabinet that the country must be ready to “stay the course” because reforms to the rail network are essential. (See 10.14am.)

• Downing Street has defended its decision to oppose above-inflation pay rises for public sector workers while approving what is likely to be an above-inflation increase in the value of the state pension for next year. (See 12.51pm.)

• Keir Starmer is on a collision course with the left wing of his party over strike action, after at least three junior frontbenchers defied his instructions and joined RMT union picket lines on Tuesday morning.

• Michael Ellis, the Cabinet Office minister, has tolds MPs that Boris Johnson “intends to appoint a new ethics adviser”. But the evasive tone he adopted, when questioned in a Commons debate, left MPs sceptical about the value of his assurance. (See 5.21pm.) Later tonight MPs will vote on a Labour proposal for a Commons committee to appoint its own adviser to do this job if Johnson does not within two months choose someone to replace Lord Geidt, who resigned as ethics adviser because of Johnson’s lack of respect for the ministerial code.

• Annual pay growth stalled at 4% in May, leaving most workers with a rise in earnings worth less than half the 9% increase in prices.

• New rules that will allow Ukrainian children to come to Britain alone are expected to be announced this week.

Boris Johnson addressing cabinet today. Photograph: Carl Court/PA

Updated at 6.03pm BST

5.40pm BST

More than half of Britons think rail strikes wholly or partly justified, poll suggests

And the Labour frontbenchers who are have been on an RMT picket line (in defiance of an order from Keir Starmer) may well be lined up with public opinion. According to new polling from Savanta ComRes, more than half of voters think the rail strikes are absolutely justified (20%) or somewhat justified (38%).

🚨New poll🚨

A majority of UK adults say that the rail strikes this week are 'justified'.

Justified - 58%
Unjustified - 34% pic.twitter.com/LH24uTgKuZ

— Savanta ComRes (@SavantaComRes) June 21, 2022

Commenting on the poll, Chris Hopkins, head of political research at the polling firm, said:

Much has been made of whether or not the public support these strikes, and our polling, that included an explanation of the dispute rather than an uninformed test of perceptions, shows a majority finding justification in the decision of rail workers to strike, along with general support for the principle of workers striking.