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
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