Industrial action 'soars' under PM

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About 610,000 days were lost in the public sector since last July, 20 times as many as the previous year, according to an analysis of official data by shadow business secretary Alan Duncan.

"In the week that some unions are calling for a huge increase in public sector pay demands, and with a shocking rise in the strike level since July, we need more than the usual promise of "tough talk" from Gordon Brown.

"The uncomfortable truth is that the unions have this government over a barrel.

"Without trade union cash, the Labour Party would collapse. As a result, Gordon Brown can no longer stand up to union disruption - as today's (Thursday's) figures show," said Mr Duncan.

The Conservatives called for an immediate suspension of the union modernisation fund, under which unions have received millions of pounds for training and other improvements, in the light of the figures.

Mr Duncan added: "Gordon Brown should immediately suspend the union modernisation fund until we can see an end to the suspicious symmetry between receipts to the Labour Party and hand-outs from the Government.

"Labour's total financial dependency on the unions is bad for our political system, now it is clear that it is damaging to our economy as well."