Virgin Trains East Coast (VTEC) is a joint venture, 90 per cent owned by Stagecoach. Recent challenges to the franchise have arisen because Stagecoach overbid for it meaning the franchise can only continue in its current form for a very limited period of time.
As a result the Secretary of State for Transport, Chris Grayling, has announced he will need to end the contact and establish a successor arrangement to operate the line.
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