PLANS for nine days of strike action over the Christmas period on the Merseyrail network has been called off.

The Rail, Maritime and Transport Union (RMT) have suspended plans for Merseyrail staff to walk out on every Saturday from November 2 to December 28 following reports that it has secured a 'major breakthrough' in protecting the role of guards on trains.

Merseyrail is believed to have tabled an offer that guarantees both a guard on the train and safety-critical role of that guard in the despatch process.

The row between RMT and Merseyrail related to a new fleet of driver-only trains that will replace the current 40-year-old rolling stock in 2020 - which the RMT said would threaten the security of guards jobs on trains.

On Friday, October 11, the RMT confirmed they had been in negotiations with Merseyrail in a bid to resolve the three-year dispute which has caused misery to many passengers.

RMT general secretary Mick Cash said: “Today’s breakthrough in the long-running Merseyrail guards’ dispute has been achieved after nearly three years of hard political, industrial and public campaigning and I want to pay tribute to RMT members who have been prepared to put themselves on the line at significant personal cost to defend safety and accessibility on the railway.

"The progress that has been achieved has been extraordinary.

"We have pushed back from the threat of wholesale Driver Only Operation across Merseyrail to not only a guarantee of a guard on every train but a guarantee that that guard will retain a safety-critical role in the despatch process including the most operationally safe method of guards closing the doors at the platform/train interface.

"That is a significant development that will resonate throughout the rail industry.

“I want to thank our negotiating team, led by our Regional Organiser John Tilley, who have worked tirelessly to pin down the crucial movement that has resulted in this offer which gives us enough in principle to suspend all planned action in the dispute.

"There is some further work to do now around the fine detail but the union remains committed, as we have been right from the start, to getting a final deal over the line that protects both the guard and their safety-critical role on Merseyrail trains.”

Commenting on today’s announcement, Andy Heath, Merseyrail managing director, said: “At no time in our many days of negotiations with the RMT did we ever lose sight of the fact that the new Merseyrail trains will be one of the best metro railway trains in the national rail network.

“These new trains deliver everything that our customers have asked for through the design of a modern interior, safety features that have responded to feedback from a variety of user panels and industry bodies across the UK and of course the sliding step and platform level boarding maximising the accessibility for all our customers.

“I am pleased that after consideration the RMT’s National Executive Committee have endorsed the latest proposal in principal and at the same time have given our customers, shoppers and traders the benefit of the lead up to Christmas being strike free by suspending the planned nine days of strikes.

 “We will now progress with the next phase of discussions to finalise an agreement so that the RMT can consult with its guard members before proceeding towards implementation.”