Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department has taken to assess the (a) feasibility and (b) the potential economic and social effects on the North of England of extending the new Borders Railway to Carlisle.

The Borders Railway is a matter for the Scottish Government in line with the Scottish Parliament’s legislative competence for the promotion and construction of railways that start, end and remain in Scotland. We look to the relevant local authorities and Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) in the Transport for the North partnership, in developing a comprehensive transport strategy for the North of England, to decide whether to engage with the Scottish Government and other stakeholders on the commissioning of such assessments. The UK Government has established a £12bn Local Growth Fund (LGF) to support LEPs in delivering their priorities for supporting local economic growth.