Up to 100,000 civil servants walked out on strike today, as the Government faced the most wide ranging series of stoppages since Labour came to power.

Jobcentre workers, coastguards and driving examiners were among the public employees to join the day of unrest as several separate disputes came to a head on the same day.

Eighty thousand staff at the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) walked out, causing widespread disruption to those claiming benefits. 10,000 Home Office staff also went on strike.

Seven hundred coastguards left their posts, causing the closure of half the UK’s coastguard stations.

In total ten Government departments and agencies will be hit by today’s strike, including the Transport Department, Driving Standards Agency and the Land Registry.

Passport workers at airports, including Heathrow’s Terminal 5, will also go on strike.

Next month will see the Public and Commercial Services union (PCS) ballot its 280,000 members in a move which could see a Spring of discontent as industrial action is stepped up.

Mark Serwotka, PCS’s General Secretary, said staff were “furious” over a series of below-inflation pay offers which led to some workers, including more than a third of DWP employees, receiving no wage increase this year.

“The Government cannot ignore the depth and breadth of anger felt by those who deliver public services that touch our lives from cradle to grave and must move to stem the growing unrest by reviewing its crude pay policy,” he said.

A number of Labour MPs who supported the rebellion against Gordon Brown over the 10p tax rate are expected to support the strikes.

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