Oral Answers to Questions

Afzal Khan Excerpts

Thursday 30th January 2020 Commons Chamber

[Grant Shapps]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend, who has campaigned on this issue for a long time. That stretch of the M20, and all other stretches that are currently being worked on, will not be opened until we have the outcome of the stocktake.

[Afzal Khan (Manchester, Gorton) (Lab)]

2. What steps he is taking to reduce regional disparities in transport investment.

[The Secretary of State for Transport (Grant Shapps)]

We have made clear our ambition to level up opportunity across the country, including through more investment in transport infrastructure.

[Afzal Khan]

The removal of Northern’s rail franchise is long overdue, but that alone will not fix the systematic problems of poor infrastructure and lacklustre investment that cripple our rail network. Northerners are frequently promised investment for new infrastructure projects, but it is rarely delivered. We were promised new platforms at Manchester Piccadilly way back in 2014 as part of George Osborne’s northern hub, but the money has never materialised. When can we expect the platforms to be built, so that passengers are no longer left waiting hours for trains that never turn up?

[Grant Shapps]

We are spending £48 billion on rail over the next five years, not including Northern Powerhouse Rail. We are spending £13 billion just in the north and, as the hon. Gentleman will know, I made a significant intervention on the Northern franchise yesterday. That level of investment will continue, and a figure that has not been exposed enough is that £333 per person is spent in the north-west, which compares with £183 per person in London. This Government are more committed to the northern powerhouse, the rail network and the transport network than any before.