‘Ghost strike’ will still take a toll on London business

Not least at Arsenal’s Emirates football stadium where 60,000 fans were wondering whether they would be able to get home after the FA Cup clash with Liverpool. A full five days of disruption would have bought untold disruption to the first full working week of the year and represented a real kick in the teeth for crucial sectors such as hospitality and retail. 

The potential loss of output across London was estimated at around £380 million by Panmure Gordon’s chief economist Simon French. And while it is unquestionably a good thing that the walkout has been averted, that is not the whole story. Across the capital, economic activity will be more muted this week, because of the meetings that had already been cancelled or rearranged, restaurant bookings that have been canned, and higher than usual levels of working from home by commuters who had changed their plans.

The hospitality sector is particularly exposed to this “ghost strike” impact. Restaurateurs tell me that cancellation levels before the strike was scrapped were close to 100%. Some of that will now come back, but certainly not all. It’s a tough business making a buck from the dining game at the best of times, and this kind of setback just does not help. 

There is now an understandable level of cynicism about the unions’ tactics. By talking tough about stoppages they bring an unavoidable level of economic damage whether or not they go ahead. 

By calling them off at the last minute their members do not lose a single penny of pay. 

This seemingly endless round of disputes and industrial action is now in its third year, with no sign of resolution despite Sunday’s stay of execution. 

At a time when London’s economy needs more than ever to be firing on all cylinders this corrosive brinkmanship needs to be brought to an end.