Challenges for Harper as he prepares to take on the RMT

Lars Patrick Berg | 10th November 2022 | Comment
Official_portrait_of_Rt_Hon_Mark_Harper_MP_crop_2

New Transport Minister Mark Harper faces a daunting inbox of challenges as he settles into his new role

New Transport Minister Mark Harper faces a daunting inbox of challenges as he settles into his new role: getting to grips with a sector that is so vital yet generates a quarter of our GHG emissions, and managing ageing and decrepit transport infrastructure as well as massive new projects such as HS2.  Probably of most urgency will be to get a grip on the Railway & Transport Union (RMT) and resolve the rail strikes that have caused such misery to commuters this summer and are set to continue. Transport Ministers, and there have been a few recently, have either refused to engage with the RMT or had little time to make any progress.  Harper said on Good Morning Britain that he was “very happy”  to meet with the Unions which he said would be “helpful”.  Whilst we wish him every success, as RMT once again holds the country to ransom, he's going to need stand firm - their recent behaviour highlights the organisation’s difficult internal politics and skewed interests. RMT Union Leaders ar...

Subscribe to The Mace

Join the member community shaping British politics and stay ahead of what's really happening in the world of politics and public affairs, with expert analysis, breaking news, and insider insights from Westminster and Brussels. The Mace is the leading news source and resource for the government affairs industry, offering required reading and lobby intelligence for professionals.

To see what you are missing out on by not subscribing to The Mace, click here to download our full membership info-pack. This includes having no paywall on op-ed content or profiles/interviews, allowing professional profiles to be read with maximum impact and visibility by government, special advisers, MPs, peers, civil servants, and policy and political decision-makers.



Gaza and the art of the deal

Mace | January 16, 2026

Trump secures ceasefire through dealmakers, but long term peace remains uncertain

The end of an era: The decline and fall of the Tory Party

Mark Fields | December 3, 2025

Former MP Mark Field – author of tell-all memoir The End of an Era – reflects on where it all went wrong for his party

Scathing criticism

Christopher Silvester | December 3, 2025

From self-lacerating memoir to by-election madness and a Labour Together takedown, The Mace’s literary editor Christopher Silvester rounds up the latest political books.

Telling a human tale

Christopher Silvester | December 3, 2025

From self-lacerating memoir to by-election madness and a Labour Together takedown, The Mace’s literary editor Christopher Silvester rounds up the latest political books.

Frankly: Nicola Sturgeon

Christopher Silvester | December 3, 2025

From self-lacerating memoir to by-election madness and a Labour Together takedown, The Mace’s literary editor Christopher Silvester rounds up the latest political books

Autumn Budget 2025: family finances squeezed, welfare rules eased

Mace | November 29, 2025

After weeks of tax rumour and expectation-setting, the 26 November Budget landed as a welfare-first package that lifts the benefits cap but tightens the screw on household incomes,

Zack to the future

Thomas Edwards | November 24, 2025

What will the Greens’ new eco-populist leader Zack Polanski – who now heads Britain’s third-largest political party – do for his next trick?

Summer Diary of a Politico Trade Queen – Part II

Allie Renison | August 20, 2025

From fireworks at Winfield House to whisky-fuelled lobbying in Mayfair, Allie Renison lifts the lid on a summer of parties, trade deals and political manoeuvring across London, Brussels

History risks repeating itself in Ireland

Peter Foreshaw Brookes | July 21, 2025

Northern Ireland faces legal confusion over UK and EU tobacco laws. A UK generational smoking ban and proposed EU excise hikes risk encouraging smuggling through the region. Critics

Will the EU agree to extend its favourable trade terms for Ukraine?

Pieter Cleppe | May 23, 2025

The EU must decide by 5 June whether to extend tariff-free trade with Ukraine. MEPs warn reintroducing duties could undermine support for Kyiv. Internal opposition, especially from farmers,