The Newhaven to Dieppe ferry service has been suspended because the 12,000 ton vessel is leaking and unsafe.

The Sardinia Vera, which has been making two crossings a day, has 31 faults, including leaks through the inner bow door.

Other supposedly watertight doors are leaking, the fire sprinkler system is not working properly and the crew does not know how to cope in an emergency.

Safety officials said the ship was not safe to make the 64-mile Channel crossing until modifications had been carried out and the mainly Italian crew had been retrained in maritime emergency procedures.

The ship, chartered by French shipping company, Transmanche, and registered in Italy is now berthed in Dieppe and there is no indication when sailings will resume.

Passengers who had booked pre-Christmas crossings to buy French wines and beers and gifts, will get refunds Bryan Hopkins, of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, who led the teams which carried out the inspection, said: "We are not satisfied this ship and its crew are safe to continue service as a passenger ferry.

"We have said further improvements are necessary and we will reinspect the vessel once the flag state has conducted its checks and proved to us everything is fine."

The day-to-day running of the vessel is the responsibility of Corsica Ferries which provides the crew.

According to the French media, there is a row brewing between Transmanche and the Italian company over the way the ship is run.

Transmanche, part of the consortium which owns the port of Dieppe, is seeking compensation from Corsica Ferries, as the Sardinia Vera has been chartered for £5m a year, the equivalent of £10,000 a day, and losses are building while the vessel is unable to sail.

The French have been anxious to get an all-year round ferry service between the two ports as they have spent millions on improving facilities at Dieppe.

The suspension of the link, once more into doubt the viability of the Newhaven-Dieppe ferry route. This was to have been the first year since 1998 that an all-year service was to have operated. It means there is no Sussex sea link to the continent.

The Transmanche service, which started early this Summer was suspended on November 29 after a routine inspection by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency and the French Centre de Securite Affaires Maritime.

They said it could not carry passengers, only freight. Transmanche Ferries immediately decided to suspend all sailings until the problems were resolved.

Officials from the two agencies responsible for the safety of cross-Channel ferries were dissatisfied at way the mainly Italian crew carried out emergency drills and were concerned about a few minor technical matters.

Transmanche and Corsica Ferries were ordered to retrain the crew by giving them a crash course in emergency maritime procedures.

The ship was re-inspected in Dieppe on Wednesday. Both agencies were still not satisfied and found even more faults.