CHANCELLOR George Osborne has been accused of selling the family silver in a £757m deal to offload the Government’s Eurostar stake.

The Treasury is shedding its 40 per cent holding in the cross-Channel operator to Anglo-Canadian consortium Patina Rail.

Mr Osborne hailed the move as fantastic for taxpayers, saying the sum was significantly ahead of expectations.

Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec (CDPQ), a Canadian pension and insurance fund institutional investor, and Hermes Infrastructure, a UK-based fund, will buy the stake.

Patina will pay £585.1m, with Eurostar agreeing to redeem the Government’s preference share, raising a further £172m for the Exchequer.

But the TSSA rail union said it proved Mr Osborne was short-sighted.

Manuel Cortes, TSSA leader, said: “Because of his outdated belief in unvarnished Thatcherism, George Osborne is once again selling off the family silver short-term financial gain.

“France and Belgium already own the majority stake in Eurostar and believe in running a publicly-owned railway.

“But one-eyed Osborne prefers the private English model where fat cat bosses are at the front of the queue, way ahead of passengers.”

Mr Osborne countered the claims, saying people would benefit from the sale.

He added: “Investing in the best quality infrastructure for Britain, getting the best value for money for the taxpayer and tackling our country's debts are key parts of our long-term economic plan, and in this agreement, we are delivering on all three.”

The deal is expected to be completed later this year, with CDPQ owning 30 per cent of Eurostar and Hermes 10 per cent.

The other shareholders will comprise France’s SNCF and Belgium’s SNCB.

The move comes after privatisation of the East Coast Main Line, with Inter City Railways, a venture between Stagecoach and Virgin, now operating services.