THIS year’s Tolpuddle Martyrs’ Festival assembles once again under the shadow of a new threat from the Tory Party to one of the most basic of human rights — the right to strike.

The pressure for corrupting the fundamental principles of democracy through the introduction of arbitrary thresholds and percentages started in London in response to action by Tube workers in defence of jobs and standards and was led by Mayor Boris Johnson.

Since then a procession of right-wing, Thatcherite wannabes have joined the charge and we now have it confirmed by David Cameron himself that a new wave of anti-union laws will be a centre-piece of the next Tory manifesto.

They want to tighten the noose for one simple reason — they know that the organised working class are the first line of defence when it comes to the fightback against austerity, attacks on jobs and working conditions and the battle against privatisation.

In the rail industry, it is us — the unions — supported by our communities who have led the fight to end the racketeering of the privatised franchise system. 

With the government’s McNulty “rail review” report being rolled out we are now seeing it in all its gory detail, with everything that RMT warned of coming at us with a vengeance.

Northern Rail and Trans-Pennine Express are just the latest franchises to join the Thameslink, Southern, and Great Northern operations in planning to expand “driver-only operation,” increase fares, reduce ticket office opening times, cut jobs and flag up possible “alliancing” between franchisees and Network Rail.

Some of the chancers being lined up for a spin on the franchise lottery simply defy belief. 

It is well known that Serco is currently under investigation by the Serious Fraud Office in relation to public contracts and was once banned by the government from being awarded any further work.

Yet the government has seen fit to hand Serco the franchise for Scottish sleeper services on a 15-year contract worth £800 million. 

This includes £100m of public money to buy a new fleet of trains from Spanish company CAF when Derby-based Bombardier was crying out for orders. 

The government also handed the massive Southern/Thameslink franchise over to a consortium involving the French state operator SNCF, which will mean that fares in London will subsidise fares in Paris.

It seems that this government is quite happy to have state ownership of our railways as long as it isn’t by the British state.

It is clear that the full force of the McNulty cuts programme is to be unleashed on all these services as well as on the infrastructure side at a time when what is required is increased capacity.

The private sector’s misrule of the bus sector has played a similar role, reducing services and raising fares in the interest of accumulating private profit rather than providing a public service. 

Private interests have ensured the same scenario of social dumping and the use of agency labour in the shipping sector. 

RMT members have been waging a long-running campaign targeting Channel Islands ferry outfit Condor as a prime example of the super-exploitation at sea, where minimum wage regulations are dodged and crews are paid as little as £2.35 an hour.

Offshore, the latest report from the House of Commons transport committee backed RMT’s long-standing demand for a full, independent inquiry into safety in the North Sea. 

True to form the government, dominated by business interests, is resisting.

In all these arenas, RMT is leading the fight across the country to halt these attacks and to ram home the case for public ownership and we know that it is only maximum unity the length and breadth of our movement that can turn the tide on this government of the rich, for the rich.

Tolpuddle this weekend, like the Durham Miners’ Gala last weekend, gives us that chance to come together, recharge the batteries and prepare for those battles that lie ahead. Enjoy the festival and the spirit of unity and solidarity that is right at its heart.

Mick Cash is RMT acting general secretary.