TRANSPORT union RMT has demanded further safety measures to protect Tube workers from the surge in Covid-19 infections.

At least three Transport for London (TfL) workers have died in recent days as the new variant has swept through the capital.

The union has written to London Mayor Sadiq Khan and London Underground demanding that only staff running an essential service are required to work and that all non-essential engineering work be suspended.

Clinically vulnerable staff must not be expected to attend their workplace if they feel that it is unsafe, and all staff should be provided with an appropriate mask when in public areas, the union says.

RMT has also demanded that its reps have sight of all data on the risk of airborne transmission in TfL workplaces, especially in sub-surface stations and on trains, and that workers will not be expected to use public transport services on which two-metre social distancing is not possible.

General secretary Mick Cash said: “The union will be backing staff who are vulnerable and if they need to withdraw to the safety of their home then we will support them.”