Integrated Rail Plan: North and Midlands

Debate between Grant Shapps and Chris Green

Thursday 18th November 2021 Commons Chamber

[Grant Shapps]

My hon. Friend quite rightly and properly highlights the challenges; any major building project can have big impacts on his constituents and others, and that can be too easily forgotten in debates in the House. I know that the individual business cases on the different phases of HS2 are being taken forward. The HS2 Minister has already visited my hon. Friend, and I recommit today to making sure that we do everything possible with him to best represent his constituents, because I appreciate that HS2 does not benefit an area just because it cuts through it.

[Chris Green (Bolton West) (Con)]

I welcome the integrated rail plan and the wider electrification project that the Government are pursuing—including the link between Bolton and Wigan—but my constituents, whether going from Horwich Parkway or Hag Fold into Manchester, have concerns about reliability because of a bottleneck in Manchester. What will my right hon. Friend do to ensure that Manchester improves its reliability, capacity and connectivity?

[Grant Shapps]

The Manchester recovery taskforce, mentioned on page 104 of the integrated rail plan, is working on that very knotty problem of what happens in the corridor as we come through and out of Manchester. It is one thing that this plan seeks to resolve, and it will help my hon. Friend’s constituents in Bolton to get that electrification, particularly between Wigan and Bolton, sorted out as well. There is a lot in here for him to digest and I look forward to my next visit.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Grant Shapps and Chris Green

Thursday 2nd July 2020 Commons Chamber

[Grant Shapps]

The hon. Gentleman is absolutely right about the critical importance of our aviation sector, which is the third biggest in the world. These are extremely worrying times. As the air bridges start to unlock, that will help, and we will hear more about those soon. It is not the case that there has not been a massive package. He forgets the £330 billion to support the economy, which has included a number of measures that the aviation sector has been able to take specific assistance from. It is okay to discount it, but that is money it has been using all the way along. In addition, the aviation sector has been able to access a process that other sectors have not necessarily been able to, putting it directly in talks between the Department for Transport and the Treasury. It has been accessing money and cash through that process, as well.

[Chris Green (Bolton West) (Con)]

  The Government have devolved a great deal of responsibility to the Mayor of Greater Manchester, who has to deliver on the Greater Manchester spatial framework and a transport infrastructure required to meet the demands of increased house building. The whole project has suffered delay after delay, so vital infrastructure such as the Westhoughton bypass is not being delivered. What can my right hon Friend do to remove the roadblock in the Mayor’s office?