Why have Eurostar trains been cancelled? Official statement

Cancellations on the Eurostar come as unexpected strikes take place in France and will see at least 24 Eurostar trains cancelled. 

Eurostar operates passenger services to and from London St Pancras – and Eurotunnel Le Shuttle, which runs vehicle-carrying trains to and from Folkestone.

Train operator Eurostar told travellers in a statement: "Due to unexpected strike action by Eurotunnel staff, services are currently not able to proceed through the Channel Tunnel until mid-afternoon at the earliest."

Update: due to unexpected strike action by Eurotunnel staff, services are currently not able to proceed through the Channel Tunnel until mid-afternoon at earliest. Trains held en route 9126, 9018, 9023, 9125 will return to their starting point as are now cancelled. >

— Eurostar (@Eurostar) December 21, 2023

Why have Eurostar trains been cancelled?

News agency Reuters obtained a statement from Getlink, which owns the Channel Tunnel and operates Eurotunnel Le Shuttle services explaining the sudden strikes: "Today’s call for strike action by representatives of Eurotunnel’s French site staff unions has resulted in the complete interruption of service and the closure of our terminals in France and the UK.”

The company are reported to have added that trade unions had rejected an offer of a bonus worth 1,000 euros (£867) per employee, demanding a payment worth three times as much.

Eurostar also shared that they had no choice but to cancel all services before 7pm and that booked on the three trains due to operate after that time were warned that “we cannot exclude additional last-minute cancellations, which may include your train”.

What is the Eurostar?

The Eurostar is an international high-speed rail service in Western Europe, connecting Belgium, France, Germany, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.