A month of rail disruption will begin on Tuesday when workers walk out for their first of a wave of 48-hour strikes, as nurses prepare to take unprecedented industrial action. Members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) are pressing ahead with two 48-hour strikes at Network Rail – and 14 train companies – from Tuesday and Friday.
Trains will run from 7.30am to 6.30pm on this week’s strike days, although many parts of the country will have no services, including most of Scotland and Wales. But, with further walkouts planned, Network Rail has warned there will be significantly reduced services, with trains more crowded and likely to start later and finisher earlier until January 8.
Meanwhile, talks to avert the nursing strike have failed after the union leader behind the action accused Health Secretary Steve Barclay of "belligerence" and refusing to discuss pay. Royal College of Nursing (RCN) general secretary Pat Cullen said nurses were "not getting an extra penny" despite their talks on Monday.
