BA cabin crew to strike after talks fail

The strike will embarrass Prime Minister Gordon Brown's Labour Party, trailing in the opinion polls.

Unite is Labour's largest financial backer and the party's strong union ties go back to its foundation in 1900. Unite's political director is Charlie Whelan, Brown's former spokesman.

Conservative leader David Cameron has accused Brown of failing to stand up to the union and compared the situation to the 1970s, which saw periods of industrial unrest under Labour.

"When the crunch comes, he can only act in the union interest, not in the national interest," Cameron said this week.

BA hopes to fly at least 60 percent of customers booked for the March 20-22 period after it trained staff to provide cover.

(Additional reporting by Kylie MacLellan and Keith Weir; Editing by Sonya Hepinstall)