[2][3][4] In December 2002, after the franchise ran into financial trouble, the Strategic Rail Authority (SRA) agreed to bail it out with a £58 million injection, with the end date brought forward from 2011 until 2006.

[5] However, continuing poor financial management resulted in the SRA deciding to strip Connex of the franchise in June 2003.

In December 2003 the SRA announced that Danish State Railways/Stagecoach, FirstGroup, Govia and MTR/Sea Containers had been shortlisted to bid for the replacement Integrated Kent franchise that would also incorporate services on High Speed 1 out of St Pancras.

In December 2008, as part of the franchise agreement, operation of services on the Redhill to Tonbridge Line passed to Southern.

[30] This followed an investigation conducted by the Department for Transport which found that, since October 2014, Southeastern had failed to return over £25 million of taxpayer funding.