Passengers are being warned of knock-on disruption following yesterday's rail strike.

Train operator Southeastern said in a message on Twitter this morning: "Trains will start later than usual this morning, with no services before 7am and severe disruption is expected following strike action yesterday.

"Please plan ahead and check your journey."

The company said that services would start later and first trains are expected to be extremely busy with a queuing system in place.

These are the after-effects of the sixth day-long rail strike this summer in an ongoing dispute over pay and conditions.

The present stalemate between unions and train operators has caused disruption for passengers.

Transport secretary Grant Shapps has described the union action as a “kick in the teeth” to workers who cannot travel to their own jobs.

He said this in a letter to Mick Lynch, general secretary of the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union, adding: "Whilst the rise of home working has limited your ability to bring the country to a standstill, your action is disproportionately impacting those who have no option but to travel to work.

“Consider the hospital porter, cleaner and everyone else who needs to physically be at their place of work. Your action is often harming the least well paid the most.”

Mr Shapps asked Mr Lynch to put Network Rail's present pay offer of 8% to his members and call off any more strikes in the meantime.

But Mr Lynch believed they would not accept that.

He told BBC Breakfast yesterday: "“I speak to thousands of our members every week, we consult at least 600 Network Rail reps on a weekly basis and we know exactly what the mood of our members is.”

Dates for any future rail strikes have not been announced.

Meanwhile, the first of an eight-day workers' strike at the UK’s biggest container port begins on Sunday.

Around 1,900 members of Unite at Felixstowe will walk out in a dispute over pay in the first strike to hit the port since 1989.