Cameron: Public Sector Strike A Damp Squib

David Cameron has described the strike by public sector workers as a "damp squib" as he insisted reforms to their pension payouts was essential.

Mr Cameron , in a rowdy session of PMQs, called the industrial action "irresponsible and damaging" and told MPs not all state workers were supporting it.

Unions have described the walkout by up to two million people as "historic" as schools, courts, museums, job centres were closed and transport and hospitals disrupted.

But the Government claimed most key public services were still open and that less than a third of civil servants had joined the strike action over pension reform and pay.

Mr Cameron said: "So far the evidence would suggest that around 40% of schools are open and less than a third of the civil service is actually striking.

"On our borders the early signs are the contingency measures are minimising the impact. We have full cover in terms of ambulance services and only 18 out of 900 JobCentres have closed.

"Despite the disappointment of the party opposite, that support irresponsible and damaging strikes, it looks like something of a damp squib."

Labour leader Ed Miliband questioned why "decent hard-working public sector workers" felt the Government was not listening to them and accused Mr Cameron of "spoiling" for a fight with the unions.

But the Prime Minister denied this was true, insisting: "I do not welcome these strikes one bit".

In bitter exchanges, he branded Mr Miliband "irresponsible, left-wing and weak" for backing the action.

In a statement to the Commons after the session, Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude called the strikes "irresponsible, inappropriate and untimely" and said there had been "a low response" from public servants.

Earlier, Chancellor George Osborne told Sky News he believed the industrial action is "futile" and warned it would harm Britain's economy.

The Chancellor told Sky News was pointless and that they would have to accept a more affordable scheme.

Mr Osborne further angered the unions with his Autumn Statement on Tuesday, in which he restricted public sector pay rises to 1% until 2015.

The spending watchdog, the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) , also warned that as many as 710,000 public sector jobs could be lost by 2016/17.

Mr Osborne said: "I don't think this strike is going to achieve anything. It is only going to damage the economy and potentially cost jobs.

"I think what we are offering at the moment is a decent pension for the public sector, much better than the pension most people in the private sector could ever afford.

"It is actually going to be a larger pension for people on lower and middle incomes than they currently get but they are going to have to work longer for it because our whole country is living longer."

He added: "What we are doing at the moment is putting public sector pensions on a basis that is affordable to the country and to taxpayers and also fair to people who work in the public sector. We don't need this strike, what we need are negotiations."

The Chancellor insisted the negotiations could achieve a "good deal" but stressed that Britain has to "live within its means".

He said: "We have got to have an affordable public sector, which is why we have had to take very difficult decisions on things like pay.

"In the end Britain has to live within its means. The alternative of bankruptcy would mean we couldn't afford the NHS, we couldn't afford schools, we couldn't afford public sector pensions, we couldn't afford a basic state pension.

"That is the alternative and we are taking action to avoid it."

Labour leader Ed Miliband said he had "huge sympathy" with everyone who was facing disruption because of the industrial action but refused to attack the strikers.

"I am not going to condemn the dinner ladies, nurses, teachers who have made the decision to go on strike today because they feel they have been put into an impossible position by a Government that has refused to negotiate properly, imposed a 3% tax rise on some of the lowest paid workers in the country and has just been ramping up the rhetoric in recent weeks," he said.

"I am afraid the Government has got to accept responsibility that it is their failure that has led to the strikes today."

Chris Keates, general secretary of the NASUWT teaching union , accused ministers of misleading the public.

She said: "The only thing making the economy weaker is the Government's economic strategy. To continue to blame public sector workers isn't going to do anything to resolve the difficulties we're in.

"The Government constantly says get back round the table - that's all the NASUWT has wanted to do, but ministers haven't called a meeting since November 2."

Ms Keates added: "To keep claming publicly that they want to negotiate, when ministers haven't called a meeting, I think that's misleading."

TUC general secretary Brendan Barber told Sky News: "Treating public service workers in this deeply unfair way, singling them out for this economic punishment at a time when the people that caused the crisis are still paying themselves lavish bonuses, tax loopholes are still being exploited by the wealthiest and by corporate Britain - this is a deeply divisive approach from this government."

And Unite general secretary Len McCluskey claimed November 30 would go down as the day when the union movement and workers fought to protect the economic and welfare advances of the last 60 years.

Mr McCluskey said: "Working people are being asked to pay for the economic mess caused by the greedy City elite whose behaviour this spineless Government has repeatedly failed to tackle.

"When Francis Maude, the Government's lead pensions negotiator, can receive a pension of £43,000 a year, but nurses, teachers, dinner ladies, firefighters and librarians have to pay substantially more, work longer and receive less in real terms when they retire, the mantra of 'We are all in this together' has a very hollow and shabby ring.

"This is a Government that will snatch at least 16% of income from public sector workers by holding down their pay for four years - but leaves the banking tax at a paltry 0.08%."