Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the level of (a) physical and (b) social infrastructure needed for the Oxford-Cambridge Growth Corridor to achieve its aims.

The Oxford-Cambridge region is home to world leading universities and globally renowned science and technology firms. But the region's true potential is being held back by constraints, including unaffordable housing and transport constraints. The Government is taking action to drive sustainable growth across this key region which, according to experts, could boost the UK economy by £78 billion by 2035.

The Government believes additional action can maximise the economic performance of the wider Oxford-Cambridge region. This is why Lord Vallance has been appointed as Oxford-Cambridge Growth Champion, to identify, coordinate and promote further interventions linked to the EWR route and drive growth across the region.

The Government is already investing in East West Rail (EWR), which will deliver much needed transport connections between Oxford and Cambridge, and other communities along the route. In the Autumn Budget, the Chancellor also committed £10m of funding to enable the Cambridge Growth Company to develop an ambitious plan for the housing, transport, water, and wider infrastructure Cambridge needs to realise its full potential. In her speech of 29 January, the Chancellor confirmed that a new Cambridge Cancer Research Hospital is being prioritised for investment as part of wave 1 of the New Hospital Programme. In the wider corridor, we will target investment in R&D clusters, including the AI Growth Zone in Culham.

The Government will deliver Phase 2 of the Spending Review and the 10 Year Infrastructure Strategy later this year, to support delivery of the Government’s plans for a decade of national renewal. Any further Government support for infrastructure in the region will be assessed and agreed through the formal Spending Review process.