UK unions urge Burnham to revoke US access to RAF bases over Iran war

Unions cite £221 rise in typical UK energy bill since war began

The general secretaries of 10 British trade unions, including Unison, the UK’s largest, delivered the demand in a letter coordinated by the Transition Security Project, in which they urged Burnham to do more to oppose what they called “the US and Israel’s devastating, illegal war on Iran,” which they said was “deepening the cost of living crisis faced by our members and the British public.”

“Since the war started, the average British household has seen its annual energy bill rise by £221, while monthly food bills are forecast to rise by £32.80. Without an end to the war, there will be no end to this cost of living crisis,” the general secretaries wrote.

Among the letter’s signatories were Unison’s Andrea Egan, the National Education Union’s Daniel Kebede and the University and College Union’s Jo Grady. Others represented included the Fire Brigades Union, the actors’ union Equity and the Communications Workers Union.

The union leaders said they were encouraged by the new government’s focus on the cost of living and the measures it was taking “to make life more affordable,” but were “deeply concerned” that Burnham had “authorised US airstrikes to be conducted from bases on British territories as part of the escalating war against Iran.”

They said Burnham had been quick to give permission for airstrikes from RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire and the Indian Ocean territory of Diego Garcia, which have become “increasingly important to the US due to the impact of Iranian counterstrikes on its Middle East bases.”

“The UK has a central role to play in de-escalation: the US has relied on its bases on UK territories to conduct the war, as they are capable of launching strategic bombers and sit within range of Iran,” the general secretaries wrote. “Revoking permission for the US to use these bases would have a significant impact on the US’s ability to further escalate a war that has been a catastrophe for people in the Middle East and an economic disaster for the world.”

The demand came after Miliband arrived in Washington this week for his first meetings with Trump administration officials since taking up the role last month. He is expected to discuss the crisis with his US counterpart, Marco Rubio, who said this week there had been progress in discussions with Iran and Oman on getting more ships through the Strait of Hormuz, but that no final agreement had been reached. Trump has vowed to give Iran “one last chance” after heavy bombing by both sides last week renewed uncertainty about the outcome of the war and prospects for oil and gas prices.

The unions said leading economists supported their call, saying the main beneficiaries of the war were the big oil companies, which have made huge profits from the squeeze on supply after the closure of shipping lanes in the Gulf.

Jonathan Portes, a professor of economics and public policy at King’s College London and a former chief economist at the Cabinet Office, said: “The new prime minister is rightly focused on improving living standards at home. But the government cannot ignore that Trump’s illegal and unnecessary war – and, more broadly, his efforts to undermine the international trading system – make that much more difficult.”

Khem Rogaly, the co-director of Transition Security Project, which coordinated the letter, said: “Allowing American strategic bombers to strike Iran from Gloucestershire could well make Britain complicit in war crimes. It also enables a war that makes life more expensive for all of us.”

A spokesperson for No 10 said Miliband’s comments in the US set out the British government’s position. Miliband said after meeting Rubio: “We did not join offensive action in this war. We’ve allowed our bases to be used for defence by our allies, our Gulf allies, and that’s absolutely the right thing to do. But the most important thing we need to do is not escalate the rhetoric, not escalate the conflict, but find that lasting ceasefire. The No 1 priority for this government is to tackle the cost of living crisis that people are facing, and my job is to work with our closest ally, the US, on getting a ceasefire – a lasting ceasefire in relation to the Iran war. We are not there yet, and we’ve got to do everything we can to get this ceasefire in place.”