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A strike affecting cross-Channel trains is to go ahead on Friday and Saturday after negotiations between unions and Eurostar's management broke down.

About 70 drivers and 20 on-board staff are to walk out over pay for 48 hours. The Aslef union said there could be "some inconvenience" to passengers.

Eurostar said it had made a "fair and reasonable" offer and was intending to operate "a normal service". The firm is confident it can cover the trains with French and Belgian drivers.

The services involved are from London St Pancras, Ebbsfleet and Ashford to France and Belgium.

Further strike action will take place on 26 and 27 December unless the row is resolved before Christmas.

The Aslef union confirmed it was proceeding with this week's walkout, despite discussions between the two sides. "There is likely to be some inconvenience to passengers," a spokesman said.

The leader of a second union involved said he realised a strike would lead to "huge disappointment" among travellers planning Christmas shopping trips to Lille and Paris. "I wish to apologise in advance for the inconvenience this will cause," said Gerry Doherty of the Transport Salaried Staffs Association. "But their anger would be better directed at Eurostar who have been refusing for months to reach a sensible settlement with us."

Eurostar managers call off strike

Eurostar train managers have called off a 48-hour strike after accepting a new offer in a row over expenses.

About 70 drivers belonging to the union Aslef are still planning to walk out from midnight with further strikes planned for 26 and 27 December.

The Transport Salaried Staffs Association (TSSA) said its 20 train managers would be now be working as normal on Friday and Saturday.

Eurostar said they were pleased the "reasonable" offer had been accepted.

The row centred on claims by union members that the falling pound meant their expenses were lower than those of their French counterparts who are paid in higher value euros.

As part of the TSSA settlement it is understood the managers have accepted a one-off payment of more than ^600 to compensate for lost earnings caused by the weak pound.

The TSSA has also called off strikes planned for 26 and 27 December.

The association's general secretary Gerry Doherty said: "This is obviously good news for the travelling public and our Eurostar members. We always wanted a negotiated settlement rather than disrupting the cross channel travel plans of thousands of passengers over the Christmas period."

A Eurostar spokesman said: "We are please that the TSSA has accepted this offer which we believe to be reasonable. We have informed Aslef that this offer remains on the table. We hope our UK train drivers see that this is a fair resolution to the dispute and abandon their proposed strike."

Eurostar said it was confident of running a normal service despite the industrial action.