Strikes hit transport in London and France

STRIKES hobbled public transport in France and London yesterday, in a wave of discontent over government cost-cutting measures that are expected to prompt walkouts across Europe.

French unions staged a nationwide walkout over plans to raise the retirement age from 60 to 62, cutting service on trains, planes, buses and subways.

London Underground workers, unhappy about job cuts, closed much of the Tube system – the first in a series of 24-hour strikes planned over the coming months.