The chief executive for FirstGroup, the UK bus and rail operator, has voiced his concerns that the British transport market in under threat.

Sir Moir Lockhead said that state-backed foreign companies were in danger of achieving potential dominance inside Britain. His statement comes in the wake of the recent market movements by France’s SNCF and Germany’s Deutsche Bahn. Although he stopped short of suggesting that either had so far threatened to ruin the operation of UK Rail, the issue was one that authorities in the UK should be monitoring seriously.

So far, there has been no evidence that the German rail group, which already owns the Chiltern passenger franchise and freight train operator EWS, had skewed the market. Deutsche Bahn’s recent £1.58bn takeover of Arriva has heightened fears that foreign groups, funded by the taxpayer, may result in greater influence in the domestic market. Sir Moir was very clear on government-backed organsiations and their need for scrutiny by authorities as the market reacts to their influence.

Sir Moir was speaking at the unveiling of a fall in profits for full-year results for FirstGroup, with the pre-tax profit dropping to £180 million on the back of a £90 million leap in hedging fuel charges and a winter freeze which limited public travel. Overall, revenues for FirstGroup rose to £6.32 billion from £6.19 billion.

The group’s finance director, Jeff Carr, confirmed that fuel hedging contracts that were signed in the past two years had been done so at an inflated price, highlighted by an average barrel price for oil of $113 as against the current $81 price.