NORTH-East rail passengers are set to benefit from discount tickets to London and Edinburgh after the Government approved new services.

The Office of Rail and Road (ORR) will allow FirstGroup's East Coast Trains Limited to operate five trains a day each way from London King’s Cross to Edinburgh, stopping at Newcastle and Morpeth.

In a further boost to the region, Virgin Trains East Coast has received permission to launch a new two-hourly service between Middlesbrough and King's Cross from May 2020.

Virgin will use new Azuma trains currently being built by Hitachi at Newton Aycliffe on the services.

The FirstGroup and Virgin links are both due to start by 2021.

FirstGroup, which has a ten-year agreement, has vowed to offer passengers fares at half the average price - with tickets sold for an average of less than £25 - on its new services.

Tim O’Toole, FirstGroup chief executive, said: "This is great news for passengers, as our new service will widen the choice of travel options between these cities and offer an attractive alternative to those available today.

“We will offer genuinely low fares at half the average price of today, while adding significant benefits to the UK economy.

"Our brand new trains will be cheaper than other rail services, greener than the plane, quicker than the coach and will get passengers from London to Edinburgh earlier than they can arrive today, all for an average fare of less than £25."

The Northern Echo understands the company could also use rolling stock from Hitachi's Newton Aycliffe plant.

Earlier this year, FirstGroup agreed a deal with trainbuilder Hitachi to buy 125mph rolling stock for its TransPennine Express franchise, which connects the North-East with Manchester and Scotland.

Middlesbrough MP Andy McDonald welcomed the new services to London.

He said: “The decision of the rail regulator to grant the Middlesbrough to Kings Cross proposed timetable in full, that is seven trains a day out and six back, is a massive shot in the arm for Middlesbrough and all Tees Valley.”

The new services were also backed by passenger groups.

David Sidebottom, passenger director at the independent watchdog Transport Focus, said: "More choice is a positive thing, especially as it can add pressure to keep prices low across all the operators on a route."

But RMT general secretary Mick Cash described the FirstGroup contract as a "fit up" by the Government.

"It gives First Group a chance to cherry-pick open access services on the East Coast in the name of profit while the public sector option is ignored yet again," he said.