Railway workers in southwestern Canada begin a five-day strike

A five-day strike by the staff of the South Western Railway (SWR) was launched during the last protest action on the role of guards on trains.

Members of the Railways, Shipping and Transportation (RMT) Union began the walkout at 00:01 BST.

RMT stated that the staff had "no choice" but to strike and accused SWR of failing to secure the guardian roles.

SWR said the action was "useless" and that he was "cynical" on the part of the union to target events such as Royal Ascot.

This longstanding conflict has resulted in 29 days of industrial action by RMT members over the past two years.

A walkout planned for February was suspended after the RMT reported that "substantial progress" had been made in discussions with the company.

This followed the suspension of strikes on Northern Rail after the company agreed to guarantee a driver on all trains.

However, the RMT stated that SWR had now "rolled back" and refused to rule out future driver-controlled operations.

The union said the guards' role would be "completely divided".

RMT Secretary-General Mick Cash said the company had "dragged its heels and failed to reach an agreement that met our expectations of the guarantee."

"The company has refused to give badurances on the future operational role of the guard, fueling fears among our members of a staple," he said.

SWR said the company had met with union representatives last week to hold new talks, but the union "insisted that action" move forward.

He added that he had responded to RMT's request to keep a guard on each train and that he then wished to go on to discuss how to make the most of the new embedded technologies.

A spokesman for SWR said the company "remains committed to finding a solution".

Pbadengers traveling to events at Twickenham, Hampton Court and Royal Ascot were invited to provide extra time for their trip.

The action ends Saturday at 23:59.