A deal has been reached to save hundreds of French jobs in Calais, halting an industrial dispute which caused Operation Stack to be launched several times this summer.

An agreement to save more than 400 jobs was made between Eurotunnel, DFDS Seaways and representatives of SCOP-SeaFrance, who manage the MyFerryLink staff, on Monday.

It means two ships, the Rodin and Berlioz, can now be used by DFDS, which bought the vessels from Eurotunnel this summer.

Eurotunnel turned its back on the cross-Channel vessels after a long-running legal dispute with the Competition and Markets Authority, which left more than 600 jobs in the balance, and making about 70 people in Dover redundant.

DFDS Seaways had an offer to save 202 MyFerryLink jobs accepted in the deal.

Meanwhile, Eurotunnel will take 130 staff to work on the Nord Pas-de-Calais ferry, as well as several more in administrative roles.

“This ends a long period of uncertainty for both our employees and our customers on the Channel..." - Carsten Jensen, DFDS

However this is depended on approval from the Competition and Markets Authority.

It will also offer former MyFerryLink workers the chance to apply for security jobs being advertised to bolster protection around the Channel Tunnel.

It takes the total number of jobs offered to ex-Seafrance workers to just over 400.

Eurotunnel spokesman John Keefe said: "If the CMA say they are happy to let us operate a ship then we will run Nord Pas-de-Calais as a slow shuttle in addition to our freight services through the tunnel.

"If they say no, that's it. There's not much more we can do."

Carsten Jensen, senior vice president at DFDS Seaways, said: “This ends a long period of uncertainty for both our employees and our customers on the Channel as this agreement gives us the platform needed to create a sustainable ferry service on the Channel.

"It also means that we have an equal number of French and UK flagged ships on the Channel, making the service a truly Anglo-French partnership, which we believe is in everyone’s best interests."

A statement released by the firm said that the Rodin and Berlioz ships will be deployed on the Dover to Calais route along with Calais Seaways.

Malo Seaways will be moved to a different part of the DFDS network.

There will be a total of six ferries out of the cross-Channel route including Dunkirk, with three ferries on each route.

A statement from DFDS said: "The additional frequency and capacity of the future operational set-up will enhance DFDS’ offering to both freight customers and passengers."