BOLTON MP David Crausby is calling for the Government to reject any plans by train companies to axe workers and remove catering services on the West Coast mainline.

The line, which encompasses Bolton station, and runs from London to Glasgow, is currently operated by Virgin Trains .

But the franchise is up for renewal and three other companies are in competition with Virgin for the contract; including Abellio, SNCF/Keolis and First Group.

Mr Crausby fears that, in order to cut costs, bids may include plans to reduce the number of catering staff from 800 to just 300 or remove the service altogether.

The Bolton North East MP has written to the Secretary of State for Transport Justine Greening calling for passengers to be put first when these decisions are made.

He said: “Passengers should be able to access food and drink, including hot food, on these cross-country services. Passengers are already paying some of the highest rail fares in Europe, so they at least deserve a good level of service.”

Mr Crausby has also signed an early day motion in Parliament calling for the catering jobs to be protected.

He said: “I sincerely hope that we won’t see jobs losses on the West Coast mainline.

“These people provide a valuable service to passengers and we shouldn’t see them made redundant just to boost the profits of the franchise operator.”