THE rail union fatcat said who said he would “throw a party” if Boris Johnson died of coronavirus has been suspended.
Steve Hedley, assistant chief of the RMT, also said he hoped the whole Cabinet contracted the deadly virus.
A spokesperson for the Rail, Maritime and Transport Union said Hedley has been suspended while they investigate his conduct.
They said in a statement: “Following a meeting of the union’s National Executive a decision has been made to suspend Senior Assistant General Secretary Steve Hedley with immediate effect while a formal investigation takes place into his conduct.”
In a joint statement RMT president Michelle Rodgers and general secretary Mick Cash said: “Steve Hedley’s comments do not represent the views of this trade union and are wholly unacceptable.”
In a series of vile posts on his public Facebook profile, Hedley – who earns £100,000 a year from the union’s low-paid members – hit back at friends who criticised him.
When one follower pointed out that Boris could die, Hedley replied: “Yes – poor virus.”
One pal who works as a carer pulled him up over the rant and Hedley fired back: “Feel free to block me.
“I hope the whole cabinet of Tory b******s get it too.
I don’t want to offend you but if Bojo pops his clogs I’m throwing a party.
Steve Hedley
“I don’t want to offend you but if Bojo pops his clogs I’m throwing a party.
“I hope the whole cabinet and higher echelons of the Tory party have been touching various bits of him.”
When another Facebook friend criticised him for the post and said “this is a human being we’re talking about”, Hedley replied: “Hitler, Mussolini and Franco were human beings too – would you use the same argument for them? “If people are offended by my posts feel free to block them.”
He added: “The question I’m asking is how far the compassion and humanity in your religion or any religion extends.
I hope the whole cabinet of Tory b******s get it too.
Steve Hedley
“I take it it doesn’t extend to Hitler who killed millions but it does to Boris who helped kill 130,000 through Tory austerity policies.
“I’ll cry no crocodile tears for people who’ve killed the working class and vulnerable for years and have mishandled this crisis so badly that NHS staff are dying because they have inadequate protective equipment and patients dying because there are not enough ventilators.”
The messages were posted after news broke that the Prime Minister was in hospital after contracting Covid-19.
The PM is now in intensive care at St Thomas’ Hospital in London fighting the disease.
Hedley was a close ally of former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn.
Last November The Sun revealed how Hedley – whose union caused misery at Christmas with extensive rail strikes – was facing an anti-Semitism probe.
In 2016 he was pictured sunning himself on holiday in Turkey while his members inflicted misery on thousands of passengers.
Pictures were posted on Facebook of him and another union official, Sean Hoyle, looking tanned and relaxed as the union’s members went on a planned five-day strike which saw hundreds of services cancelled.
On Wednesday night, RMT president Michelle Rodgers and general secretary Mick Cash said in a joint statement: “Steve Hedley’s comments do not represent the views of this trade union and are wholly unacceptable.”
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