Virgin puts in a last-ditch attempt to make FirstGroup change direction

Richard Branson wants the train deal postponed for a month until after the summer holidays (Getty Images)

Lawyers for Virgin Trains were yesterday preparing to launch a last-minute legal challenge to stop the Government signing a contract which will strip them of their right to run the West Coast Mainline service.

The company had a team of lawyers working over the Bank Holiday examining their options for a judicial review. A final decision will be made today but a spokesman for the company said a challenge was "likely" unless the Government backed down and allowed Parliament to scrutinise the deal.

"You don't pay expensive lawyers to work over the Bank Holiday weekend unless your intentions are pretty clear," said a group spokesman.

The move came as Labour urged Transport Secretary Justine Greening not to sign off the contract, which could happen any time from midnight tonight, until MPs have been able to scrutinise it in detail.

FirstGroup claims it will deliver better value for taxpayers and plans major improvements to the InterCity West Coast franchise.

In a BBC interview, Richard Branson who runs Virgin Trains alongside the transport company Stagecoach claimed that FirstGroup's bid will almost certainly lead to bankruptcy. "I think that the person who can really intervene to try to get some sense into the Department for Transport is the Prime Minister and he is on holiday… We would like things delayed by a month or so [and would] be very happy to run it on a not-for-profit basis."

The Department for Transport dismissed Sir Richard's offer to run the service on a not-for-profit basis, insisting it would go ahead with the contract.

FirstGroup say the bidding process was fair and deliverable. Chief executive Tim O'Toole said: "We won the bid fair and square."

More than 100,000 members of the public have also signed an online petition against the decision, in a campaign supported by double Olympic champion Mo Farah, Lord Sugar and chef Jamie Oliver.