The administration’s ultimatum now seems like cheap talk, and it illustrates the risks of carelessly drawing red lines and issuing highly public threats that won’t be enforced.

After a failed attempt by ministers to bounce the union into an agreement by announcing its terms (which included all sorts of union red lines such as drivers having to pay for their own training) in the media rather than over the negotiation table, there is an understandable reluctance on the part of the unions to engage in any discussions unless there are no preconditions.

Red line

Meaning

Noun