November 30th - Eurostar security staff to strike in December

Simon Calder's Independent Travel Podcast

The Independent

Places & Travel, Leisure, Society & Culture

3.6 • 628 Ratings

🗓️ 30 November 2022

⏱️ 8 minutes

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Summary

Travellers hoping to escape by train to Paris, Brussels or Amsterdam in the run-up to Christmas could have their plans wrecked by the latest strike call.

Members of the RMT union working at London St Pancras as security staff for Eurostar will walk out on four days in a dispute over pay.

Read the full story here: https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-and-advice/eurostar-strike-london-paris-brussels-amsterdam-b2236106.html

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Hello and welcome to today's independent podcast and that sound in the background, very familiar
0:08.4	to those of us who spend quite a lot of time here on the concourse at London St. Pancras International.
0:15.0	That was the 131 train departing for Paris and I hope everyone on board is going to enjoy a sunny journey to
0:23.1	the French capital and get there on time. That would be frankly a first because we have the
0:29.6	situation where for the last couple of days it's been widespread disruption. First of all, on
0:36.9	Monday afternoon there were problems with the power supply.
0:40.7	That led to widespread cancellations and long, long, long delays, affecting not just Eurostar.
0:46.7	This is on the high-speed one line, which runs from here at London, St. Pancras, all the way to the English coast and the entrance to the Channel Tunnel.
0:56.2	Also hit, of course, the very good at southeastern high-speed javelin services to
1:01.5	places like Dover, Canterbury and Ramsgate.
1:06.5	Anyway, that wasn't working.
1:08.0	Then, overnight, they worked to get it fixed. And then a couple of the
1:12.6	trains, it appears, that were due to, that were there to help out, they broke down themselves
1:18.4	and blocked the line. So all very messy. And look, it's, it is an extremely unfortunate
1:25.8	situation. But just, I'm afraid, disruption as usual.
1:30.3	And there's always that in travel. I mean, I've been covering travel disruption since, I think, early in the 13th century.
1:38.3	And it's always been there. And that is different from what we have elsewhere in the railways, including on Eurostar now, because I've just been across the road talking to Mick Lynch, the general secretary of the RMT union, because if you're finding it difficult to keep up with the strikes, and frankly, who wouldn't be be Euro star security staff are going to go
2:04.4	on strike on four days going up to Christmas the 16th that's a Friday a Sunday the 18th
2:11.3	Thursday the 22nd and Friday the 23rd of December those dates all chosen because that's
2:16.9	when they can do most damage. Of course they do.
2:20.3	That's what the whole point of going on strike is. You won't have the biggest effect. And those are the
2:24.1	peak days for people traveling to Paris, to Amsterdam, to Brussels, maybe even to the French ski slopes.
	...

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