P&O Ferries to resume sailings on routes suspended since it sacked nearly 800 staff

P&O Ferries has announced it is preparing to restart sailings “from this weekend” on routes suspended since it sacked nearly 800 seafarers. The firm revealed plans to resume operations for four of its ships.

It has been prevented from running all but one of its vessels since it announced widespread redundancies on March 17. The company sparked outrage by replacing its crews with cheaper agency workers, without notice.

A spokesman for the firm said: “From this weekend, P&O Ferries are getting ready to resume services across a number of vital routes. P&O has been working closely with regulators to ensure our ships are safe to sail.

Read more: Dozens of easyJet and British Airways flights cancelled across UK

“P&O is looking forward to welcoming back vital services and we expect to have two of our vessels ready to sail on the Dover/Calais route by next week, subject to regulatory sign-off, namely both the Pride of Kent and Spirit of Britain between Dover/Calais. P&O are also expecting to be able to sail both the European Causeway, which runs between Larne and Cairnryan, and the Pride of Hull, which runs services between Hull and Rotterdam.”

He added: “We thank our customers for their patience during this time and we apologise to those customers whose journeys have been cancelled and disrupted.” The announcement comes as a former P&O Ferries chef is reportedly suing the company for unfair dismissal, racial discrimination and harassment.

The BBC reported that John Lansdown has filed a tribunal claim against the firm and its chief executive, and is seeking financial compensation and exemplary damages of up to £76 million. P&O Ferries said its job cuts were “categorically not based on race or the nationality of the staff