UNISON members at the Environment Agency launched another weekend of strikes today in a long-running dispute over “woeful” pay. 

The union said that the stoppage, which will start from 7pm tonight until 7am on Monday, marks a “significant escalation” of industrial action that began last year. 

Staff were given a “terrible deal” of just 2 per cent, plus a one-off lump sum of only £345, last autumn — almost five times smaller than 40-year high double-digit inflation, Unison said.