Transport secretary Patrick McLoughlin believes a deal that will see Siemens produce more than 1,000 new state-of-the-art carriages for the Thameslink rail line is good news for the UK's rail industry.

The company - along with Cross London Trains - was awarded a £1.6 billion contract on June 14th, although an official announcement has been delayed until now because of the "Alcatel mandatory standstill period", which is customary on deals of this nature.

Mr McLoughlin suggested the deal has the potential to create up to 2,000 jobs throughout the UK's supply chain.

The contract is part of a huge £6 billion project aimed at increasing capacity on the busy line.

"This is just one of many rolling stock orders in the pipeline which is both great news for other suppliers and the wider economy," the transport secretary commented.

According to the Department for Transport, the first new-look train service will be introduced in 2016 and the entire fleet is expected to be ready two years later.