Tube unions call off strike action

A strike by London Underground workers which crippled Tube services was called off last night, following marathon peace talks.

Around 2,000 members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union walked out at 6pm on Monday and were due to stay on strike until tomorrow evening in a row linked to the collapse of maintenance giant Metronet.

But after several hours of talks between the union and Transport for London, the RMT announced that the action was being suspended immediately.

The union had been seeking assurances that its members would not lose out on jobs or pensions as a result of Metronet going into administration.

TfL welcomed the union's move but warned that services would still be disrupted today. TfL said it had clarified assurances on jobs and pensions during yesterday's talks.

The union said it was waiting for the outcome of a meeting with pension trustees today, but that the strike would be suspended straight away.

The union will meet again on Friday before deciding whether to press ahead with a second 72-hour strike next Monday.

A spokesman for TfL said: "We are pleased the RMT has suspended its strike action at Metronet following the clarification of all jobs and pensions issues. We will now work to provide the best possible Tube service on Wednesday. However as the strike was suspended so late this evening it will take time for us to restore a full service on all Underground lines tomorrow.

"Passengers should check before they travel to see how Tube services are running.

"Our staff will be available to provide travel advice and assistance on Wednesday."

The strike closed two-thirds of the Tube network causing travel chaos for millions of passengers.