Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if her Department will make an assessment of the adequacy of the levels of funding provided to Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council for highway surface preventative maintenance and carriageway structural work, including the prevention and fixing of potholes.

The Department provides substantial, formula‑based funding to all local highway authorities in England to help them maintain their local road networks.

Highways maintenance funding for Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council is paid to the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA). GMCA has been allocated a £1.07 billion City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement (CRSTS) for the 2022–27 period and will receive a £2.5 billion Transport for City Regions settlement for 2027–32. This funding supports investment in GMCA’s local transport priorities and includes funding for highways maintenance. It is for GMCA to determine how much of this funding is allocated to highways maintenance, but they must ensure that appropriate levels are allocated to its constituent local highway authorities so that they can meet their statutory duty under section 41 of the Highways Act 1980.

These long-term settlements provide longer term funding certainty for local transport improvements and enable authorities to plan ahead and shift away from short-term fixes to proactive and preventative maintenance. In 2026/27, GMCA will also be eligible to receive an additional £15.5 million in highways maintenance incentive funding.