Integrated Rail Plan: North and Midlands
Debate between Graham Stringer and Grant Shapps(3 years ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Grant Shapps
My hon. Friend has been an incredible advocate for Toton and the surrounding area. Today is really a triumph for him, because not only will we ensure that we connect up the major cities—so, Birmingham to Nottingham—but we have committed to Toton to ensure that the brand-new development also gets development funding, which will be matched by the private sector, in order to develop a station that allows Toton to fulfil the role for which he has campaigned so assiduously. Toton is very much in the plan today and I think that he will be delighted with what he reads.
Graham Stringer (Blackley and Broughton) (Lab)
The Secretary of State has done an extraordinarily good job of presenting what No. 10 is briefing to the press is an £18 billion reduction in the rail investment programme. That is the truth. He has also not told the House that the plan involves getting rid of the tunnels that take HS2 through Manchester to a low-level station at Manchester Piccadilly. Will he do an assessment of the impact that putting HS2 on stilts through Manchester will have on potential regeneration? HS2 will bring regeneration, but if we put it in the air like that, it is most likely to sterilise the areas on either side. He would not have put Crossrail on stilts in Greater London.
Grant Shapps
It is worth explaining to the House that the tunnels will bring HS2 into Manchester; it will not be on stilts coming in. I think that the hon. Gentleman is referring specifically to the station element, which has been studied and re-studied many different times. Of course, we can only spend the same money once and we need to spend it as wisely as possible. If we spend £6 billion or £7 billion building the station underground at Manchester, we will take away from Liverpool, Leeds, Hull or some of the other places that are calling for money. He rightly points out that for the difference of four minutes in the journey from Manchester to Leeds, for example, the cost will be £18 billion less, but that does not take away from the fact that in today’s announcement there is £23 billion for Northern Powerhouse Rail, including new high-speed lines from Warrington to West Yorkshire and all the huge upgrades that we have been describing. Manchester is a principal beneficiary of this entire programme and we wish his constituents well in their new journey times.
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Graham Stringer and Grant Shapps
Graham Stringer (Blackley and Broughton) (Lab)
T5. The Housing Minister is familiar with the blight caused by private landlords in old terraced houses in Manchester and Salford. The area-based registration of private landlords has had some success in dealing with the problem, but those schemes under the Housing Act 2004 are coming to an end. If local authorities can show that there has been some success, will he agree to the extension of those schemes?
Grant Shapps
The simple answer is yes. I have visited the hon. Gentleman’s constituency and seen some of the problems for myself. I am very much in favour of the discretionary local licensing schemes, which can play an important part. I pledge that when I come back to see his Collyhurst estate, which is about to have its decent homes funding get under way and have work done on that, I will be very happy to visit one of those licensing schemes.