Those travelling on Britain’s railways this week are being told to brace for more disruption as train drivers stage an overtime ban.
In what is an ongoing dispute over pay, and following on from what has already been several days of pre-planned strike action by RMT rail workers nationwide over the last two weeks, further disruption and delays are to be expected this week as members of the Aslef union at 15 train companies stage a week-long overtime ban.
Aslef members refuse to work overtime from this Monday to Saturday, and then again from 7-12 August.
Northern, Avanti West Coast, and TransPennine Express are just three of the train companies operating services across Greater Manchester and the North West where passengers could expect delays.
Aslef members say they “don’t want to take this action” as they don’t want passengers to be “inconvenienced”, but claim they have been “forced into this place” by the train companies and the UK Government – which are yet to make a pay offer they deem “fair and sensible” since 2019.
ADVERTISEMENT
Passengers told to brace for more rail disruption this week as train drivers stage overtime ban / Credit: Northern
Aslef general secretary Mick Whelan said the government made an offer to the union for a 4% increase back in April, with a further rise that was dependent on train drivers giving up certain terms and conditions, but this was not seen to be acceptable and no further negotiations have happened since then.
“We have not heard a word from the employers since then,” Mr Whelan stated.
ADVERTISEMENT
“We haven’t had a meeting, or a phone call, a text message, nor an email, for the three months, and we haven’t sat down with the government since January 6 [and] that shows how little the companies and the government care about passengers and staff – they are happy to let this go on and on.”
He continued: “We are determined to get a proper increase for men and women who haven’t had one for four years while inflation has been roaring away.
“Our members, perfectly reasonably, want to be able to buy now what they could buy back in 2019.”
ADVERTISEMENT
It affects members of the Aslef union at 15 train companies across the UK / Credit: Network Rail
As the week-long overtime ban begins across the UK, a Department for Transport spokesperson said in response to Aslef: “The government has met the rail unions, listened to them and facilitated improved offers on pay and reform.
“The union leaders should put these fair and reasonable offers to their members so this dispute can be resolved.”
Featured Image – Network Rail
News
Manchester man jailed after sexually assaulting and masturbating in front of woman on train
Emily Sergeant
A man has been jailed after sexually assaulting and masturbating in front of a woman on board a train to Manchester.
Following an extensive British Transport Police (BTP) investigation, Nisan Fernando Kurukulasuriya, of Troutbeck Road in Altrincham, was sentenced at Manchester Crown Court last month.
At the trail last month, the court heard how, on Monday 20 April 2026, 39-year-old Kurukulasuriya was on a train from Stoke to Manchester and sat next to a woman he didn’t know, who was on the phone.
He then sexually assaulted her repeatedly, doing so again even after being pushed away by the woman.
The woman then noticed that Kurukulasuriya had exposed himself and was masturbating in front of her. She shouted at him, and in response, he stood up and ran away to leave the train – but the woman immediately got up to report the incident to staff.
When the train arrived at Manchester Piccadilly, the woman alerted a member of staff while Kurukulasuriya was stood only a few meters away, and BTP were subsequently called straight away.
Police quickly attended and arrested Kurukulasuriya.
When police interviewed him, Kurukulasuriya showed no remorse for his actions and refused to answer any questions put to him.
After pleading guilty to Sexual Assault and Outraging Public Decency at a previous court hearing, Kurukulasuriya was sentenced to eight months’ imprisonment, and was also handed a 10-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO) which will bar him from sitting next to any woman he doesn’t know on public transport, as well as being put on thensex offenders register for 10 years.
BTP Detective Sergeant, Mark Haviland, called Kurukulasuriya a ‘despicable man’ who targeted a woman travelling alone ‘for his own sick sexual gratification’.
Featured Image – BTP
News
GMP officer sentenced after hitting pedestrian during police chase in Rochdale
Emily Sergeant
A police officer has been sentenced this week after he struck and ‘seriously injured’ a pedestrian following a pursuit of a suspected drink driver in Rochdale.
35-year-old Greater Manchester Police (GMP) officer PC Sam Lockley pleaded guilty back in January 2026 following an Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) investigation.
The IOPC investigation established that, in the early hours of the morning on 19 November 2023, PC Lockley was driving a marked police vehicle with the lights and sirens activated, and attempted to stop a suspected drunk driver on Drake Street in Rochdale.
A short pursuit that commenced but stopped merely a minute later after the police vehicle collided with a pedestrian on the footpath of Rochdale Road at approximately 3:30am.
The evidence gathered indicated that PC Lockley failed to slow down as he approached and drove through the red traffic lights at the Kingsway junction, and was travelling at a speed of 96mph in a 30mph zone.
The pedestrian suffered ‘serious injuries’ as a result of the collision, and received extensive medical treatment following.
At a hearing back in February of this year, PC Lockley received a two-year suspended sentence and was ordered to carry out 15 days community service, while also receiving two-year driving disqualification.
Also following the investigation, the IOPC decided that Lockley should face a gross misconduct hearing to face allegations that his manner of driving breached the police standards of professional behaviour.
“We continue to liaise with the force about disciplinary proceedings,” the IOPC concluded.
IOPC Director Amanda Rowe added: “My sympathies remain with the man, who sustained serious injuries, and all those affected by the incident.
“This was a complex investigation which relied on extensive amounts of data and expert analysis and the evidence showed PC Lockley drove at excessive speeds at night-time and although he was responding to a report of a suspected drink driver, it does not excuse his manner of driving.
“PC Lockley admitted he drove in a dangerous manner when he didn’t address hazards or warnings during the pursuit and ultimately by the time he saw the pedestrian, he was travelling too fast to avoid a collision.
“His actions that day have had long-lasting consequences and he has now been held accountable.”
Emily Sergeant -
31st July 2023 
