UNITE would accept turnout thresholds on strike ballots if the union’s members could vote at work, general secretary Len McCluskey has said, reports Luke James.

The Trade Union Bill will ban strikes unless 50 per cent of members take part in the ballot, while strikes in “essential services” will also require 40 per cent of members to vote in favour of action.

Business Secretary Sajid Javid has claimed that thresholds are needed to prevent action unless it is “properly supported” by members.

Speaking at Labour conference on Monday evening, Mr McCluskey admitted that Unite was also “concerned about low turnouts.”

But he said that the answer lies in moving away from postal ballots to “more modern methods.”

Issuing a direct challenge to Mr Javid, he added: “If we had secure workplace balloting then we wouldn’t have a turnout problem.”