SUSSEX'S rail operator has received £22 million in compensation for delays caused by track problems but paid out only £2 million to passengers.

The gulf between payments received and made by Govia Thameslink is the widest of any operator in the country, but Govia insist the two figures are unrelated.

Meanwhile it emerged that more than half of Brighton to London trains were late in the last year.

New Department for Transport figures show rail companies nationwide received £105 million from Network Rail for unplanned disruption, but paid out only £45 million.

The largest difference between the figures for one company was Govia, which paid passengers compensation claims worth a total of £2 million during 2015/16, while Network Rail's bill in relation to the lines in south-east England was £22 million.

Passengers on Southern services have suffered months of disruption caused by strikes over changes to the role of conductors and high levels of staff sickness.

Network Rail makes payments to train companies for passenger delays which are attributed to it. This includes reasons such as infrastructure faults, vandalism and bad weather.

The payments are designed to compensate rail operators for ''long-term impact of disruption'' and future profits lost. However in the case of Govia, which operates a management contract from the DfT, all Network Rail payments went to the government, as do ticket sales.

Delay-repay compensation payment from Govia on the other hand only totalled £2 million, but spokesmen for both Govia and the Rail Delivery Group (RDG), representing train operators, described NR's payments as "entirely separate" from those made to passengers.

Govia said the company paid around 50 per cent more compensation to passengers compared with the previous year once a change in the way the data was presented was taken into account.

Rail Minister Paul Maynard said: "We have been working with partners in the rail industry to ensure passengers are aware of their right to recompense for disruption and, at the same time, we are making the claim process simpler and swifter so that it is easier and more attractive to apply."

Meanwhile new figures from the Office of Rail and Road revealed that more than 640 train journeys were cancelled nationally each day over the past year.

The worst offender was Govia Thameslink, with 83,000 trains cancelled in the last twelve months across its network which is the largest in the country.

More than half of Southern Mainline trains between Brighton and London arrived a minute or more late.

The RMT yesterday attacked Govia bosses for asking staff to sign a contract which stipulated that backdated holiday pay would not be paid until the industrial dispute is finally over - unless employees committed not to undertake further industrial action - “outrageous and bullying".