The wave of strikes in Britain continued next month with a major civil service strike. On February 1, around 100,000 British civil servants working in 124 government departments will go on strike, the PCS union announced on Wednesday.

In recent months, Britain has been hit by train and ambulance attacks. Health workers, teachers, driving instructors, airport passport checkers and lawyers have also stopped working in recent months. This increased the pressure on Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.

Read also | Possible pay rise for striking British hospital staff

Many government employees took part in the strike. As a result, it may be difficult to take a driving test or apply for a passport on February 1. Benefit payments may also be deferred.

February 1 was deliberately chosen because that day had already been campaigned by the umbrella body of the British trade unions against the Sunak government’s bill limiting the right to strike. Sunak wanted a guaranteed minimum service level in action, causing the strike to lose momentum.

Read also | Trade union leaders threaten more coordinated strikes in Britain

Hack on UK post

British postal company Royal Mail is unable to deliver letters and parcels to other countries for the time being. The company suffers from what it calls ‘cyber incidents’. Royal Mail is asking customers such as the company not to offer export packages at this time.

Royal Mail is one of the largest postal companies in the world and is also active in the Netherlands through its parcels subsidiary GLS. According to the company, thousands of businesses in the UK use its service to send parcels to customers outside the UK.

It is not entirely clear what exactly is meant by a cyber incident. Perhaps it was the ransomware that prevented the 507-year-old Royal Mail from accessing its systems. The company said it was working with outside experts to resolve the issue. The incident has also been reported to supervisors and security services.

Royal Mail can still import companies from outside the UK. With such a package, a slightly longer delivery time must be taken into account.