Eurostar's monopoly over high-speed continental passenger train services through the Channel Tunnel could be set to be broken by Sir Richard Branson.

According to reports, the billionaire Virgin boss is drafting up plans to go head-to-head with Eurostar – a company which has enraged many in Kent by failing to stop any of its continental services at either Ashford or Ebbsfleet since the pandemic.

However, with Virgin bosses keeping tight-lipped over the claims – reported in the Telegraph – it is not known if the proposals would include reviving the fortunes of Kent’s two international stations.

The news comes hot on the heels of Spanish company Evolyn formally declaring an interest in a Eurostar challenger, which Ashford MP Damian Green hopes will eventually lead to trains stopping once again in the county.

Ashford residents have called for Eurostar trains to be brought back after the international rail links were suspended during the pandemic. Eurostar has insisted it does not make economic sense to revive the services yet. More than 23,000 people signed a petition calling for the services to be reinstated in Kent earlier this year.

If tycoon Branson’s plans come to fruition, it would mark a return to the UK rail industry after his Virgin Trains company ended its services in Britain four years ago.

An industry source told the Telegraph that Virgin “would have a strong chance of succeeding” on any cross-Channel routes given its experience running a UK trains franchise from 1997 to 2019.

“Virgin doesn’t comment on rumour or speculation,” a Virgin spokesman added.

Eurostar has had a stranglehold on services from London to Europe since 1994. It pays Eurotunnel’s owners GetLink to use the Channel Tunnel but there are no restrictions to prevent others from now operating on the route if they can agree similar carriage deals with the tunnel operator.

it is hoped any direct competition to Eurostar – which almost went to the wall during the travel lockdowns after failing to secure any government financial support – could see cheaper prices and more options for travellers from Kent.

GetLink declined to comment on Virgin’s prospective plans but said it would “welcome growth in traffic through the Channel Tunnel whether from the current incumbent, Eurostar, or from new entrants to the market”.

The Telegraph reported former Virgin Trains boss Phil Whittingham has been tasked with formulating the plans.

The newspaper report points to the ability to break the Eurostar stranglehold on the route as similar to the approach Branson took when he went head-to-head with trans-Atlantic aircraft operators