THE Border Force and driving examiners went on strike today while the railways are set to be hit with more industrial action as large numbers of commuters returned to work following the Christmas break.

Border Force officers who are members of the Public and Commercial Services union (PCS) working at Gatwick, Heathrow, Birmingham, Cardiff, Manchester and Glasgow airports and the port of Newhaven are continuing strikes for four days.

The strikes by the Border Force are over jobs, conditions and pay amid the cost-of-living crisis.

Driving examiners have also organised a five-day strike involving PCS members in 71 test centres in the Midlands and eastern England who are employed by the Driver and Vehicles Standards Agency (DVSA) as driving examiners and local driving test managers.

PCS general secretary Mark Serwotka said: “Our members have been offered a pay rise of just 2 per cent at a time when [inflation] is above 10 per cent.

“We know our action will cause widespread disruption and inconvenience to people in eastern England and the Midlands — hundreds of driving tests have been cancelled already in other parts of the country — but the government is to blame.

“These strikes could be called off tomorrow if [Prime Minister] Rishi Sunak and [Chancellor] Jeremy Hunt put some money on the table.”

Industrial action linked to the railways is also set to continue with members of the Transport Salaried Staffs’ Association (TSSA) at Great Western Railway and West Midlands Trains.

Great Western Railway workers are due to take industrial action from midday today until midnight, while union members at West Midlands Trains began their action this afternoon and will conclude at midday tomorrow.

The TSSA is preparing to adjust the way it ballots workers with plans to have different sections of its membership voting in separate ballots allowing the union more flexibility in the way it organises strike action.

Passengers have been told to prepare for “significantly disrupted” travel into the new year amid ongoing industrial action.

A No 10 spokesman said: “We want the strikes to come to an end, we want people to agree a fair pay settlement but, as we’ve said before, what we can’t do is allow for double-digit pay rises that will embed inflation going forward.”