A 24-hour strike by Coastguard, Customs and Immigration officers at Dover - due to take place today - has been called off.

More than 250,000 members of the Public and Commercial Services Union were due to stage a one-day strike over the government's public sector pay cap.

The stoppage would have been part of a UK-wide strike hitting civil and public services.

The union says the action has been suspended for 28 days pending fresh talks aimed at resolving a series of disputes over pay.

One in five in the civil service earns less than £15,000 a year, and thousands receive just above the minimum wage.

"The everyday things we take for granted, from passports and getting back into work, through to tax credits, coastguards and securing our borders are delivered by hard-working civil and public servants," said branch secretary Pete Norris.

"Giving these people pay rises that take their wages to just 13 or 25 pence above the national minimum wage is unacceptable when facing double digit rises in food, fuel and housing costs."