THE Transport Secretary has been accused of “going rogue” with her massive pay hike offer to train drivers.
Government figures say Louise Haigh caught them off guard with the huge 15 per cent rise presented to Aslef in August.
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The deal — made in a bid to end two years of rail strikes — saw some drivers’ pay soar past £80,000 for a four-day week, with no strings attached like reforms to strict workers’ rights protections.
But coming just two weeks after Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced up to ten million pensioners would lose their winter fuel payments, it sparked major backlash.
Last night, Ms Haigh’s allies insisted she had the full backing of No10 and the Treasury for the deal.
At the time, she said: “I promised to move fast and fix things, and that’s exactly what we’re doing.”
There was embarrassment when Aslef vowed to strike again in the days after the deal was offered, complaining about working conditions.
It is also claimed the PM was left furious by her generous offer, while Cabinet figures have blamed the decision for triggering weeks of woes.
One government source claimed: “Lou went rogue.”
Another added: “This whole thing came out of nowhere and she didn’t tell the Treasury what was going on, let alone ask for the cash. She totally blindsided everyone.”
A Whitehall insider last night said it was not correct to say it was not a proper cross-government process.
It emerged during the election that Ms Haigh’s parliamentary aide Liam Conlon was given £4,000 by Aslef to help his bid to become an MP.