Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions his Department has held with Network Rail on future priorities for investment in the East Coast Main Line for Control Period 7 (CP7) 2024–2029.

The Government has announced Control Period 6 investment of up to £780m in the East Coast Main Line (ECML), which demonstrates Government’s commitment to the ECML. The Department is working with stakeholders, including Transport for the North, to identify and assess further potential enhancements for the East Coast Main Line. We will take staged decisions to progress further enhancements through the Rail Network Enhancement Pipeline process.