There is "no justification" for the strikes on Britain's railways, Prime Minister Tony Blair said yesterday.

Such industrial action belonged to the past, he said.

However, he stopped short of directly attacking the Communication Workers' Union, which will decide this week whether to go ahead with a nationwide strike in the postal service.

Mr Blair insisted his controversial attack on "wreckers" who were frustrating the improvement of public services was directed at the Tories, and not at the trade unions.

Speaking on Sky News, he said: "In respect of the railways there is no justification for these (strikes)."

Mr Blair said he was "pleased" the latest round of action there had been postponed. The Post Office was going through a '"huge process" of change, the Prime Minister said.

"It is for management and unions to work it out. They are not actually on strike," he said.

Although the action on the railways should not be happening, it would be wrong to ban it, said Mr Blair.

"All the available evidence is that it doesn't work and it just causes more problems than it solves," he said.

Mr Blair added that there were fewer days lost in industrial disputes under his Government then under the previous Conservative government.