Burnham hands train drivers on Manchester route bumper pay rise to avoid strike - including £720 boost just for covering five days a week

Andy Burnham has handed train drivers a bumper pay deal after unions threatened to strike on the flagship London to Manchester rail route. Avanti West Coast drivers, who start on salaries of around £70,000, have secured an above-inflation 3.6 per cent pay rise alongside improved payments for Sundays and rest-day working.Under the agreement, drivers will receive time-and-a-half for working Sundays and can earn up to £720 for working a fifth day of the week.The deal has prompted fury from the Conservatives, with shadow transport secretary Richard Holden accusing Labour of 'totally capitulating to their union paymasters'.He said: 'Taxpayers are being asked to stump up millions simply to save Burnham's blushes.'This is Labour paying more for less with passengers and taxpayers footing the bill.'The agreement was reached after members of the Aslef union rejected an earlier pay offer and backed industrial action, raising the prospect of disruption for thousands of passengers.Avanti operates services connecting London with Manchester, Birmingham and Glasgow on the busy West Coast Main Line. Andy Burnham has handed train drivers a bumper pay deal after unions threatened to strike on the flagship London to Manchester rail route. Pictured: Avanti West Coast train pulling into Crewe Railway Station on 3rd March 2026 in Crewe Andy Burnham arrives at Manchester Piccadilly station , Greater Manchester, to board the 10.54am Avanti West coast train to Euston then onto the Palace of Westminster to be sworn in as the new MP for MakerfieldLeaked union correspondence obtained by The Sunday Times reveals how talks accelerated following the threat of strikes.In a letter to staff, Aslef council secretary Si Goode celebrated the strength of the ballot result, saying it had enabled the union to put 'immense pressure' on both Avanti and the Government.Union representatives were called into an emergency meeting with rail bosses shortly afterwards, where an improved offer covering salaries, Sunday working and rest days was put forward.Mr Goode later told members: 'We believe that we have delivered on all our collective aspirations and made significant improvements to our pay and remuneration.'The agreement comes after Avanti cut 38 services a day over the summer.The operator has also struggled with punctuality, with 57.4 per cent of services arriving on time during the latest 12-month period, according to Office of Rail and Road figures.Some 5.6 per cent of its scheduled services were cancelled over the same period.Meanwhile, drivers at LNER have been offered a separate deal worth 12 per cent over four years, alongside changes to working conditions.Aslef has backed that offer and put it to a vote of its members.The union donated more than £300,000 to Labour in 2024 through affiliation, conference and general election campaign fees, according to its latest published accounts.The Government has defended the agreements, arguing that settling rail disputes prevents costly disruption to passengers and taxpayers.Industrial action on the railways between June 2022 and August 2024 resulted in around £850million in lost passenger revenue, according to government figures.The Department for Transport said: 'We are pleased to see both Avanti West Coast and LNER work with Aslef to enable a fair and affordable settlement to keep Britain's railways moving and prevent disruption for passengers.'It comes after in June resident doctors accepted a pay offer that brings to an end years of strikes that inflicted misery on patients and cost the NHS billions of pounds.The British Medical Association said its members had voted in favour of the deal, which is worth an extra 6.6 per cent this year.It means the medics – previously known as junior doctors – will be earning 35.2 per cent more on average than four years ago, with some taking home more than £100,000 a year before they even qualify as a consultant.Then-Health Secretary James Murray described the development as 'very good news for resident doctors, patients and the NHS'.But the Conservatives accused Labour of 'shaking the magic money tree to bribe the BMA' and warned it would not prevent more 'damaging strikes in the future'.Thousands of medics in England were set to stage a four-day walkout on June 15, which would have been the 16th round of strike action since 2023.But it was called off on June 13 after the union agreed to put the last-ditch offer to members.The BMA said 53 per cent voted in favour of the offer, on a turnout of 57 per cent.It includes an average 6.6 per cent pay uplift to be fully implemented by April 2027, reforms to the doctors' pay structure that will deliver two pay rises a year, 4,500 more specialist training places and greater reimbursements of mandatory fees, such as professional memberships and exams.Resident doctors' strikes have cost the NHS £3billion, with each day of industrial action costing £50million.The BMA had warned members that if they rejected the deal, the strikes would 'escalate in intensity'.It has already indicated it would be prepared to strike again if the Government does not deliver generous pay rises in future years.