Tube strike to go ahead after talks collapse

Hundreds of thousands of London Underground passengers face travel chaos on Friday after last-ditch talks failed to avert a strike.

Members of Aslef on the Central Line will walk out for 24 hours in a dispute over industrial relations, halting all services.

The strike will also hit services on the Waterloo and City Line, which links Waterloo with the City of London.

Aslef official Finn Brennan said: “Despite our best efforts, we were unable to make real progress at Acas talks.

“Management still refuse to move on the key issues in this dispute. Bizarrely, they are refusing to hold a review into the dismissal of a driver until Friday afternoon, 14 hours after the strike will have started.

“Aslef asked that this case be reviewed on August 2 and repeatedly requested that this review be brought forward.

“Instead of trying to resolve this dispute, management are engaged in macho posturing that does a real disservice to all those who will be inconvenienced by the strike on Friday.

“The issues at the heart of this dispute are about people being treated fairly and with dignity at work. It is simply wrong that a driver with 25 years of excellent service should be summarily dismissed for one error of judgment when dealing with a defective train or permanently removed from driving duties because they have time off sick after a traumatic incident.”