Related: Ambulance strike must go ahead as talks fail to break deadlock
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Families are being urged to get their Christmas travel plans in place “as soon as possible” as a four-day motorway strike to coincide with a new wave of rail breakdowns threatens travel chaos over the holiday period
National Roads workers will be on strike from today until Christmas Day in the latest phase of industrial action by the public service’s biggest union ahead of the Christmas weekend.
The strike involves members of the Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union who work as road traffic officers and regional operational center operatives, in London and the South East of England.
It comes as industrial action across Britain’s rail network will stop some trains from running from Friday ahead of national strikes starting on Christmas Eve.
The Independent’s Simon Calder has urged families to hit the roads as soon as possible, saying: “I’ve never known a Christmas like this for the stress of travel.
And he added: “Towards the end of the week and Christmas Day it will be very complicated, with the roads very busy.
“And the railroads, well, services will end Friday night or quite early Saturday.”
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Rail strikes about to begin in France
Semi-official strikes by train guards in France have scuppered the Christmas travel plans of around 200,000 passengers on SNCF, the national operator.
Hundreds of guards working for the SNCF will stop work over the next two weekends as part of a pay dispute. They have rejected a deal offering a €600 (£522) bonus on top of a 6% across-the-board pay rise in the rail organisation.
His union, SUD Rail, has not officially sanctioned the strike, which has been coordinated on social media by a “national collective of guards” known as the CNA. But the union is helping with walkout communications.
As in the UK, Friday is expected to be the busiest day of the winter as travelers head to their Christmas destinations. Many trains were full before the strike.
Two out of every three TGVs (high-speed trains) are expected to run between Paris and the south of France, and from the capital to the Atlantic. About half of the trains in northern France will run there, as well as 75% of services between Paris and Strasbourg on the German border.
Christophe Fanichet, chief executive of SNCF, told Franceinfo radio that the Christmas and New Year’s strikes were “truly unacceptable” and that passengers with advance tickets whose trains were canceled would get back double of the original cost of the trip.
He said the move would cost SNCF “several tens of millions of euros”.
Alternatively, passengers can switch on any other day where seats are available and will not have to pay any fare difference.
Simon Calder December 22, 2022 11:30 am
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Christmas travel mayhem – all the train and flight issues to navigate this week
The busiest travel week of the winter has begun, with millions on the move between now and December 25. But travelers are facing a wide range of disruptions on the railways and in the skies, with strikes, staff shortages and weather combining to create a travel nightmare ahead of Christmas.
Our travel correspondent Simon Calder has everything you need to know as the race begins:
Emily Atkinson December 22, 2022 11:15 am
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National highway strike for the New Year
National highway strikes in London start today and run until Christmas Day, but union leaders warn this is just the beginning.
Industrial action on Britain’s roads will start again on December 30, when PCS members of the West Midlands and South West England traffic officer service take action.
The departures are then expected to arrive in the East Midlands and the East of England on January 6.
PCS also says all its national highways members working for the traffic enforcement service will be on strike on January 3 and 4.
Emily Atkinson December 22, 2022 11:00 am
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Rail chaos spreads ahead of next national rail strike
Train passengers between London, the West Midlands, North West England, North Wales and South Scotland are facing delays and overcrowded trains.
Avanti West Coast has canceled at least 40 express services there from London Euston for Thursday, blaming crew shortages. Axed services include five each way between the capital and Manchester Piccadilly, and the same number to and from Liverpool Lime Street.
Ahead of a strike by members of the Unite union working for East Midlands Railway, commuters between London, Leicester, Derby, Nottingham and Sheffield will have no northbound trains after 7.35pm on Thursday.
A skeleton service will run on Friday 23 December, with no trains apart from a Corby-London shuttle on Christmas Eve.
The next RMT national strike starts at 6pm on December 24 and ends at 6am on December 27.
Simon Calder December 22, 2022 10:45 am
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Thursday will be a ‘very busy day for emergency services’
Matthew Taylor, of the NHS Confederation, said he expected Thursday to be a “very busy day for emergency departments” following strikes by ambulance workers.
“This is the worst possible time for industrial action,” he told Sky News as he pointed to the winter pressures already facing the NHS.
He said there was currently a gap between “demand and capacity” and that “consistent funding” and the “right policies” would be needed to address it.
“There is now money that has been made available to help get people out of hospital into community settings, support them at home, and that is very welcome.
“The problem is that the money wasn’t announced until a few weeks ago, so it hasn’t been able to get to the front line.”
He warned that the winter will be “incredibly harsh”.
“There are signs of hope looking forward, but now we are paying the price for these 10 years of austerity, for the covid backlog, for not addressing these issues.
“So this winter is going to be incredibly harsh, there’s nothing we can do about it. But industrial action adds to what is already a difficult situation,” he said.
But he also urged people not to put off seeking treatment. “It’s not really in anyone’s interest if people don’t show up.”
Emily Atkinson December 22, 2022 10:30 am
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Start Christmas travel plans “as early as you can”, travel experts warn
Families are being urged to get their Christmas travel plans in place “as soon as possible” as a four-day motorway strike to coincide with a new wave of rail breakdowns threatens travel chaos over the holiday period
National Roads workers will be on strike from today until Christmas Day in the latest phase of industrial action by the public service’s biggest union ahead of the Christmas weekend.
The Independent’s Simon Calder has urged families to hit the roads as soon as possible, telling Good Morning Britain: “I’ve never known a Christmas like this for the stress of travel.
He added: “It will get really bad towards the end of the week and Christmas Day, with the roads very busy.
“And the railroads, well, services will end Friday night or quite early Saturday.”
Emily Atkinson December 22, 2022 10:25 am
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Hospitals brace for ‘surge in demand for emergency treatment’ after discharge
Saffron Cordery, interim chief executive of NHS providers, said hospitals were prepared for an “increase in demand for emergency treatment” as a knock-on effect of the ambulance and nursing strikes.
He told Times Radio that there was a “very difficult picture” across the health and care system, with social care “extremely stressed” and a “deeply challenging” situation in the NHS.
He called on ministers to negotiate pay with unions, which has so far been ruled out by health secretary Steve Barclay.
Emily Atkinson December 22, 2022 10:00 am
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National roads on strike from Thursday until Christmas Day
National Highways workers will strike from today until Christmas Day as the winter of discontent continues to snowball.
This latest phase of industrial action by the largest public service union has been launched by members of the Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union who work as road traffic officers and regional operational center operatives, in London and in the south-east of England.
PCS general secretary Mark Serwotka said: “We are aware that our action is likely to cause inconvenience to commuters, but while we are stepping up before Christmas, we are reminding people that this dispute could be resolved today if the government puts more money on the table.
“Our partners tell us that they have to reduce spending for Christmas because they are running out of money. They have been offered a reward below inflation, at a time when inflation is over 10 percent.”
Emily Atkinson December 22, 2022 9:30 am
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The public should always consider using the NHS responsibly, says the health chief
Matthew Taylor, from the NHS Confederation, said the public should always consider how to use the NHS responsibly.
It came as politicians and NHS officials urged the public to take extra care, avoid risky behavior and curb excessive drinking as ambulance strikes hit the health service on Wednesday.
“It’s important that the public use the NHS in the best possible way,” he told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.
He said it was not a solution to the pressures facing the health service, warning of the danger of creating “bulk demand”.
“We cannot ask the public to cope day to day without having the services that the NHS wants to provide.”
Emily Atkinson22 December 2022 09:00
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NHS chief warns health service cannot ‘continue to cope’ with winter strikes
Matthew Taylor, Chief…