Rugby travel chaos over French strike

Rugby fans planning to cross the Channel for the forthcoming World Cup final are facing travel chaos as France downs tools for a strike.

The country's biggest union has called for a massive turnout in the nationwide strike to force the government to negotiate over its plans to scrap pension privileges enjoyed by a minority of workers.

State rail network SNCF expects only 10 per cent of trains to run on "Black Thursday", and the Eurostar rail link and airports also face severe disruption which could continue for several days.

Bus, power, gas and some other public sector workers will also strike in protest at moves to end their right to retire earlier than workers in other industries.

Eurostar has cancelled two London-Paris trains on Thursday and one Paris-Lille train the following day.

Its website warns: "Due to the likely widespread disruption across the transport network in France, including the Paris Metro, Eurostar is advising all travellers not to travel if at all possible on Thursday, October 18 and Friday, October 19."

President Nicolas Sarkozy's government has been accused by union leaders of trying to push the changes through without discussion, and warned the strike is only the start of protests over pensions, wages and jobs.

In 1995, national strikes paralysed the country and had a massive impact on the former conservative government, which was forced to abandon similar pension reforms.

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