CRITICS who have called for First Capital Connect to lose the right to run trains between St Albans and London have misunderstood its deal with the Government, the rail firm is insisting.

Luton MP Kelvin Hopkins and Bob Crow, boss of the train drivers' RMT union, called yesterday for the company to lose its franchise on April 1, invoking a performance-related clause in its franchise contract.

Branding the Thameslink route a "disgrace", Mr Crow said: “The time for threatening First Group over their Thameslink franchise is over. Now it’s time for the Government to act, sack the company and return their operations to direct public ownership.

"They have a break clause they can activate and we can get this mob off the tracks by April Fool’s Day."

But according to Gareth Beazant, a spokesman for First Capital Connect and its parent company First Group, the opportunity for ending the franchise on April 1 has long passed.

He said: "There was a performance-related clause to end the franchise after four years, on April 1 2010.

"That was based on performance up to November 2008. We met our performance targets and were told in early 2009 the franchise would not be broken."

First Group's deal with the Government runs out in April 2015, but could be extended for up to nine years.