The closure of the P&O route will lead to 350 job losses

Earlier this year, P&O Ferries said it would stop sailings on the Portsmouth-Le Havre route this autumn.

On Wednesday, Portsmouth port officials announced that Paris-based shipping company LD Lines would take over the route from 3 October.

P&O is to make 350 workers, it employed while running the route, redundant at the end of the month.

'Key gateway continues'

A spokesman said it was not clear whether the new operator would be recruiting in the UK.

LD Lines will make one return crossing a day using a vessel that can take 1,850 passengers and 120 trucks.

Martin Putman, Portsmouth port manager, said: "This announcement is the fruition of combined effort by parties both sides of the Channel to ensure that the Portsmouth-Le Havre route, a key gateway to and from northern France and beyond, continues.

"We're delighted to welcome Louis Dreyfus Armateurs (LD Lines' parent company) on board."