Southern Rail services now rank among the “best in the world”, insists the boss of parent company Go-Ahead.

Chief executive David Brown defended the recent performance of the network, which has been blighted in recent years by poor punctuality and a bitter industrial dispute with staff.

Southern’s metro performance was “exceptionally good”, Mr Brown said. “It stands up to any railway in the world,” he added.

The comments came as Go-Ahead, the majority owner of Southern, Govia Thameslink and Great Northern, posted a 10pc rise in revenue to £3.8bn in the year to June 29. Pre-tax profit fell by a third to £97m. This included a £17m pension charge to equalise retirement benefits for men and women.

Dividends paid remained flat at £44m.

Although bus revenue represents less than a third of total turnover, the division’s operating profit is almost four times that made on the railways – £96m versus £25m from running trains.

Mr Brown said that a strong performance by London and international buses was offset by slightly weaker result in the regions.

Shares in the FTSE 250 company rose around 2pc in morning trade as the City was reassured by the annual figures.