NEW strikes have been called by South Western Railway (SWR) staff on the Saturday before Christmas as the company has yet to engage in “serious talks” with the union.

Guards and train drivers will be walking out on December 22 in the latest move against driver-only operations being implemented by SWR.

Transport union RMT claims that the company is “hell-bent” on running services with just a driver on board.

The announcement of industrial action follows new figures showing a huge spike in violent incidents on Britain’s railways in the past several years.

RMT general secretary Mick Cash said: “There’s a simple solution to ‎this dispute and it means SWR stop playing with words and negotiate the guard guarantee that reflects the safety values of the agreements RMT has pinned down in other parts of the rail industry.”