YouSaid · the spoken record
Heidi Alexander
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On the record 2010–2026
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“I can tell the hon. Gentleman that we are already on this issue across the wider south-east. We are expanding the pay-as-you-go system with tap-in, tap-out technology, and further stations are due to come online. I am happy to talk about a further tranche beyond that, but we need to crack on with the ones that are already in the pipeline.”
House of Commons12 February 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I understand that the public toilets in Weymouth station have been closed for several years, due to antisocial behaviour and vandalism. That is unacceptable, and I can assure my hon. Friend that my Department will raise it with South Western Railway.”
House of Commons12 February 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“The hon. Lady is right to raise this issue. I have been in contact with the DVLA about this matter; it is putting new systems in place to ensure that it is doing everything that it can, as standard, to process these cases as quickly as possible. In the meantime, I have been keen to ensure that there is an escalation mechanism. I am pleased to hear that her constituents have got a quicker response after they have contacted her, but that should not have to be the case or the norm.”
House of Commons12 February 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“My hon. Friend makes a really important point. I am due to meet her and colleagues soon to discuss the resilience of the rail network, among other matters. I appreciate that a well-functioning, high-quality public transport system is absolutely essential to getting the economy firing on all cylinders.”
House of Commons12 February 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Improving connections between the great cities of the north of England—making those connections into Liverpool and Manchester better—will have a knock-on impact on the whole region. If the hon. Gentleman wants to write to me about the south Fylde line, in particular, I will come back to him.”
House of Commons12 February 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I am very happy to clarify that that is a disingenuous claim, at best, from Conservative-controlled Bexley council. The Government did not publish a ranked list of authorities, but it is clear that, of the many councils that achieved a green rating overall, Bexley was not one—it was ranked amber.”
House of Commons12 February 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Given our ambitions for the north of England, it is important that we crack on and get it done.”
House of Commons2 February 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“This is a vital step in the delivery of Northern Powerhouse Rail. Question put. A Division was called.”
House of Commons2 February 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“For the purposes of paragraphs 2 and 3 above, each of the following is a relevant earlier Session— (a) Session 2021-22; (b) Session 2022-23; (c) Session 2023-24; (d) except where the qualifying Session is this Session, each Session of this Parliament before the qualifying Session; (e) where the new Session is the first Session of the next Parliament, each qualifying Session 11. In paragraph 1 above, the reference to further proceedings does not include proceedings under Standing Order 224A(8) (deposit of supplementary environmental information). 12. In paragraph 3 above, references to the submission of a petition are to its submission electronically, by post or in person. That these Orders be Standing Orders of the House.”
House of Commons2 February 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“If this paragraph applies— (a) the Bill shall be deemed to have been reported from the Select Committee and from the Public Bill Committee and to have been considered, and (b) the Bill shall be set down as an order of the day for third reading. 8. If this paragraph applies, the Bill shall be deemed to have passed through all its stages in this House. Other 9. If proceedings in Public Bill Committee are begun but not completed before the end of a qualifying Session, the chair of the Committee shall report the Bill to the House as so far amended and the Bill and any evidence received by the Committee shall be ordered to lie upon the Table. 10.”
House of Commons2 February 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“4. If this paragraph applies, the Bill shall be deemed to have been reported from the Select Committee and to have been re-committed to a Public Bill Committee. 5. If this paragraph applies, the Bill shall be deemed to have been reported from the Select Committee and to have been re-committed to a Public Bill Committee in respect of those clauses and Schedules not ordered to stand part of the Bill in the qualifying Session. 6. If this paragraph applies— (a) the Bill shall be deemed to have been reported from the Select Committee and from the Public Bill Committee, and (b) the Bill shall be set down as an order of the day for consideration. 7.”
House of Commons2 February 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“3. If this paragraph applies— (a) the Bill shall stand committed to a Select Committee of such Members as were members of the Committee when proceedings on the Bill were suspended in the qualifying Session; (b) any instruction of the House to the Committee in the qualifying Session or a relevant earlier Session shall be an instruction to the Committee on the Bill in the new Session; (c) all petitions submitted in the qualifying Session or a relevant earlier Session which stand referred to the Committee and which have not been withdrawn, and any petition submitted between the day on which the qualifying Session ends and the day on which proceedings on the Bill are resumed in the new Session in accordance with this Order, shall stand referred to the Committee in the new Session; (d) any minutes of evidence taken and any papers laid before the Committee in the qualifying Session or a relevant earlier Session shall stand referred to the Committee in the new Session; (e) only those petitions mentioned in sub-paragraph (c), and any petition which may be submitted to the Private Bill Office and in which the petitioners complain of any amendment proposed by the member in charge of the Bill which, if the Bill were a private bill, could not be made except upon petition for additional provision or of any matter which has arisen during the progress of the Bill before the Committee in the new Session, shall stand referred to the Committee; (f) any petitioners whose petitions stand referred to the Committee in the new Session shall, subject to the rules and orders of the House, be entitled to be heard upon their petition by themselves, their counsel, representatives or parliamentary agents provided that the petition is prepared and signed in conformity with the rules and orders of the House; and the Member in charge of the Bill shall be entitled to be heard through counsel or agents in favour of the Bill against any such petition; (g) the Committee shall require any hearing in relation to a petition mentioned in sub-paragraph (f) above to take place in person, unless exceptional circumstances apply; (h) in applying the rules of the House in relation to parliamentary agents, any reference to a petitioner in person shall be treated as including a reference to a duly authorised member or officer of an organisation, group or body; (i) the Committee shall have power to sit notwithstanding any adjournment of the House, to adjourn from place to place, and to report from day to day minutes of evidence taken before it; (j) the Committee shall have power to make special reports from time to time; (k) three shall be the quorum of the Committee.”
House of Commons2 February 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“If a Bill is presented in the new Session in the same terms as those in which the Bill stood when proceedings on it were suspended in the qualifying Session in question— (a) the Bill so presented shall be ordered to be printed and shall be deemed to have been read the first and second time; (b) the Standing Orders and practice of the House applicable to the Bill, so far as complied with or dispensed with in the qualifying Session or a relevant earlier Session, shall be deemed to have been complied with or (as the case may be) dispensed with in the new Session; (c) any resolution relating to the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 that is passed by the House in the qualifying Session or a relevant earlier Session shall be deemed to have been passed by the House in the new Session; (d) the Bill shall be dealt with in accordance with— (i) paragraph 3, if proceedings in Select Committee were not completed when proceedings on the Bill were suspended; (ii) paragraph 4, if the Bill has been reported from the Select Committee but proceedings on the Bill in Public Bill Committee were not begun when proceedings on the Bill were suspended; (iii) paragraph 5, if proceedings in Public Bill Committee were begun but not completed when proceedings on the Bill were suspended (and see also paragraph 9); (iv) paragraph 6, if the Bill was waiting to be considered when proceedings on it were suspended; (v) paragraph 7, if the Bill was waiting for third reading when proceedings on it were suspended; (vi) paragraph 8, if the Bill has been read the third time and sent to the House of Lords.”
House of Commons2 February 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I beg to move, That the following provisions shall apply in respect of the High Speed Rail (Crewe - Manchester) Bill if proceedings on the Bill have not been completed before the end of this Session or any subsequent Session of this Parliament (each a “qualifying Session”). Suspension at end of qualifying Session 1. Further proceedings on the Bill shall be suspended from the day on which the qualifying Session in question ends until the Session that follows it (“the new Session”). 2.”
House of Commons2 February 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“This new line, which will connect two great cities in the north of England, is part of the second phase of Northern Powerhouse Rail, which this Government committed to last month. Before turning to why it is important to maintain the Bill’s momentum via today’s motions, it may be helpful if I set out a brief history of the Bill’s passage. Hon. Members will recall that in His Majesty’s most Gracious Speech, this Government announced our commitment to carrying over this Bill from the previous Parliament. The Government recognise the importance of rail infrastructure in driving economic growth, enhancing productivity and unlocking opportunity in all parts of the country. The Bill itself is the mechanism by which planning consent for the eastern part of the new route between Liverpool and Manchester can be granted.”
House of Commons2 February 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“The motions we have before us today are vital for the delivery of the High Speed Rail (Crewe - Manchester) Bill. It is important that I am clear at the outset about what these motions do and what they do not do. This is categorically not about reinstating HS2 north of the west midlands, and neither are these motions about addressing the longer-term capacity constraints of the west coast main line between Manchester and Birmingham. Instead, the motions are simply focused on ensuring that the Government follow the speediest and most logical consenting route to progressing plans for a new rail line between Liverpool and Manchester—a line that will also call at Warrington and Manchester airport.”
House of Commons2 February 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“We are delivering a turn-up-and-go railway on which missing one train no longer means waiting an hour for the next. That means more frequent and reliable commuter services will be the norm. This will help more people access good jobs, lead to more housing and offer greater opportunities for businesses to expand.”
House of Commons2 February 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“It is the Government’s intention to table an amendment to remove these powers formally during the Select Committee’s proceedings. The Bill will, however, have the necessary powers to deliver the section of Northern Powerhouse Rail into Manchester via Manchester airport, including new stations at Manchester Piccadilly and Manchester airport itself. We are now seeking to progress the Bill to make the best use of the significant progress it has already made. This Government are investing up to £45 billion to deliver Northern Powerhouse Rail, transforming inter-city rail in the north and driving economic growth. Northern Powerhouse Rail will ensure that the people of the north no longer have to tolerate second-rate rail infrastructure.”
House of Commons2 February 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“This Bill was first introduced in Parliament in January 2022. Since then, its purpose has been refined. It was initially intended to provide powers for both HS2 from Crewe to Manchester and for the section of the NPR route that would deliver east-west connectivity. The previous Government’s Network North announcement in October 2023 cancelled high-speed rail north of the west midlands, so the HS2 element of the Bill was no longer required. With the support of local leaders, in May 2024—just before the last general election—this House passed an instruction that the Bill should be adapted to focus on delivering the section of Northern Powerhouse Rail into Manchester. That is the Bill now before us. All elements of the Bill that pertain to sections of the route south of Millington will be removed.”
House of Commons2 February 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I constantly speak to my counterpart in the Welsh Government, Ken Skates, and we have a very good collaborative working relationship. I simply remind the hon. Lady that this Government committed £445 million to Welsh rail in last year’s spending review. That is a very significant investment, which is going to result in improved stations and in more reliable and more frequent services for the people of Wales. It addresses the historical lack of investment seen in Wales. I was explaining why it is so important that we agree to these motions and maintain momentum in gaining planning consent for a new rail route between Liverpool and Manchester. We need to reconstitute the hybrid Bill Select Committee, with its membership determined in the usual way, and we need to provide for the carry-over of the Bill between Sessions.”
House of Commons2 February 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“We will ensure that work on both the eastern and western section of the new Liverpool to Manchester line is fully integrated, and that we do everything we can to ensure that the new line is open for use as soon as possible once phase 1 of Northern Powerhouse Rail in Yorkshire is completed. Before I close, I would like to express my gratitude to my hon. Friends the Members for Easington (Grahame Morris) and for Birmingham Hall Green and Moseley (Tahir Ali) and the hon. Member for Brigg and Immingham (Martin Vickers) for their valuable work to date on the hybrid Bill Select Committee in the previous Parliament.”
House of Commons2 February 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I will ensure that the organisations the hon. Gentleman has mentioned are appropriately consulted throughout this process. We as a Government are determined to work in partnership with all stakeholders —landowners, businesses and individuals—who are affected. The hybrid Bill Select Committee is of course a quasi-judicial process, but on behalf of my Department I undertake to make sure that all appropriate conversations are happening. Alongside this Bill, we are undertaking development work for the connection to Liverpool via Warrington Bank Quay. We will work in partnership with local stakeholders throughout the development process, and the detailed route from Millington to Liverpool will be subject to future consultation. We will determine the consenting route for this part of the line in due course.”
House of Commons2 February 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“If the shadow Minister wants to understand why billions of pounds-worth of taxpayers’ money has been wasted on HS2, he needs to ask some of his colleagues some serious questions as to why his Government gave the go-ahead to HS2 when they did not know what they were asking the contractors to build.”
House of Commons2 February 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“The shadow Minister claims that the Government are going to be spending significant money on consultants, but the money we allocated in the spending review is to acquire land and do preparatory works on the Yorkshire schemes—those three corridors improving links into Leeds from Bradford, York and Sheffield—as well as to plan properly. To pick up the point made by the Lib Dem spokesperson, the hon. Member for Didcot and Wantage (Olly Glover), we will not be making the same mistakes as the previous Government—we will not be letting contracts when we have not defined the scope of works.”
House of Commons2 February 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I have to say, however, that I fundamentally disagree with his characterisation of this Government’s commitment to Northern Powerhouse Rail. I would say gently to him that it is a bit rich for someone from a party that first talked about Northern Powerhouse Rail in 2014 to criticise this Government for investing more than £1 billion in this spending review, which is significantly more than the hon. Gentleman’s Government ever did in the years since 2014. It was his party that was guilty of dither and delay when it came to improving rail infrastructure in the north of England.”
House of Commons2 February 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“This has been a good debate and I am very grateful to all right hon. and hon. Members who have contributed. As I said in my introductory remarks, I believe that these motions represent an important step forward in delivering Northern Powerhouse Rail. As my hon. Friend the Member for Easington (Grahame Morris) said, these plans will deliver faster, more frequent rail connections between fast-growing city regions in the north, which will enable more jobs, new homes and a greater number of opportunities for businesses to invest and expand. I would like to pick up on some of the remarks that have been made tonight. I welcome the recognition by the shadow Minister, the hon. Member for Broadland and Fakenham (Jerome Mayhew), that this is a practical mechanism for taking forward work on Northern Powerhouse Rail in the north-west of England.”
House of Commons2 February 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“As I said, we have worked closely with leaders in the north of England and have a sequenced, credible, phased investment plan for how we will improve those rail services so that people are not stood on platforms when they miss a train, worrying that the next one is going to take an hour to arrive.”
House of Commons2 February 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“As I thought I made clear when I gave my statement on Northern Powerhouse Rail to the House a couple of weeks ago—the shadow Minister made some sarcastic comments about my visit to each of the directly elected mayors along the northern growth corridor—we have agreed that those mayors and areas will be making local contributions to this scheme. We are ambitious with our plans for a “turn up and go” railway in the north of England, and we are going to get on with it—unlike his Government, who never did. The right hon. Member for Tatton (Esther McVey) gave us some colourful descriptions of what she thinks this rail scheme is all about, but she could not be more wrong.”
House of Commons2 February 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“We have been clear that we expect work to start on the Yorkshire package of improvements in this Parliament. We have also said that we expect work to start on the link between Manchester and Liverpool in the 2030s. The right hon. Lady will recall that Crossrail in London was granted consent back in 2007 and the line was opened in 2022—I make that 15 years. Railways are not built overnight. To conclude, the Bill will provide the necessary powers to deliver the section of Northern Powerhouse Rail into Manchester. Progressing the Bill today is the most efficient approach as it makes use of the work that has already taken place. Today’s motions will allow the Bill to continue its passage through Parliament and will allow the invaluable work of the hybrid Bill Select Committee to recommence.”
House of Commons2 February 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“At the heart of this lies connectivity, because only by strengthening the links between our northern cities and bringing their pools of talent closer together can the region begin to rival the other major growth corridors in Europe. Too many northerners still face the choice of either staying at home and putting aspiration on hold or moving away in search of a better future. I say no more unfair choices and no more missed opportunities. Today we start delivering Northern Powerhouse Rail, and I commend this statement to the House.”
House of Commons14 January 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“In the meantime, we will retain land that the Government have already purchased between the west midlands and Crewe. This will be an incremental programme of change, and delivery will be taken forward after NPR has been built. Nevertheless, I believe that laying out our strategy now is sensible, responsible and in the long-term interests of the country. Today we are announcing a second rail revolution in the very region that gave us the first. The north powered Britain’s past, and it can lead this country’s future. This plan is a downpayment on the north’s potential and part of a broader growth drive to lift the region’s productivity, boost living standards and add tens of billions to the UK economy.”
House of Commons14 January 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“If we are to secure Britain’s long-term growth, we must also recognise that future capacity and connectivity is needed along other major routes, such as the west coast main line, and ensure that this is reflected in our decision making now. I can therefore confirm this Government’s long-term aim to see a full new north-south line from Birmingham to Manchester. That is one of the reasons why we have chosen the Liverpool to Manchester route, as put forward by local mayors, because it is the only route that properly preserves our ability ultimately to build a new line south to address longer-term congestion and crowding challenges on the west coast main line. Again, this plan will not be a revival of HS2, and no decisions have been taken on the specification or timetable.”
House of Commons14 January 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I have today instructed my officials to immediately resume work on the adapted hybrid Bill, so that we can reach planning consent for the parts of the route in Manchester. These plans align with the prospectus of the Liverpool-Manchester Railway Board, and I would like to thank all of the board’s members, including the chair, former Rail Minister Huw Merriman, who is also backing our plans today. The third phase, which takes us to the 2040s, will improve connectivity across the Pennines, over and above the trans-Pennine route upgrade currently under way. I see Bradford to Manchester, Leeds to Manchester, and Sheffield to Manchester as key routes that we will upgrade.”
House of Commons14 January 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“It means pressing forward with plans for a new station in Bradford, with funding secured to take it forward subject to business case, and it means working with local leaders on a redesigned York station masterplan. I would like to recognise the work carried out by Lord Blunkett in his Yorkshire plan for rail. It was his vision, endorsed by the white rose mayors, that informed our plan for phase 1, and I am proud that Lord Blunkett is backing our plans today. Work also starts now for the second phase, west of the Pennines, with major construction planned for the 2030s. It includes a new route, and a predominantly new line, between Liverpool and Manchester. This will run via new stations, improving access to Manchester airport from across the north and north Wales, and to Warrington Bank Quay, with plans to deliver thousands of new homes.”
House of Commons14 January 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“We are making £1.1 billion available to develop NPR over the next four years. This will proceed in three phases, sequenced so that passengers experience a better railway as soon as possible. The first phase will prioritise electrification and upgrades east of the Pennines for delivery in the 2030s. That covers the Leeds-Bradford, Sheffield-Leeds and Leeds-York corridors, including the stations. Alongside NPR, we will develop the business case for the Leamside line, as part of our broader plans for the north. I pay tribute to my hon. Friend the Member for Washington and Gateshead South (Mrs Hodgson), who has been campaigning on this for over 20 years. Phase 1’s benefits will be clear.”
House of Commons14 January 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Unlike the previous Government’s Network North plan, which was announced without so much as a phone call to the mayors, we have been working directly with them on developing the proposals. I am proud to announce that every single one of those mayors is backing the plan today. I am clear that NPR will not be a central Government vanity project. It will be rooted in northern communities, and designed, developed and delivered from the bottom up. We will also take the time to get this right. That starts with agreeing mature, stable designs as well as consents, all before construction. Finally, unlike HS2, this is not about the fastest line at any cost. Northern Powerhouse Rail will be the shoulders of this nation’s rail network, improving services across the north and beyond. Let me now turn to delivery.”
House of Commons14 January 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“We will invest up to a further £45 billion to create a turn-up-and-go railway along the northern growth corridor of Liverpool, Manchester, Bradford, Leeds and Sheffield, as well as York. There will be regular services onward to Newcastle and Hull, and to Chester for connections to north Wales. Make no mistake: NPR will transform how people travel. We will end the hour-long waits if people miss their train. We will attract more people to a railway that will be faster, more accessible and more frequent than ever before. For northerners who have long complained about being treated as second-class citizens, my message is simple: those days are over. This is an ambitious long-term programme, but it is not HS2 reheated. I stood at the Dispatch Box last year and said that we would learn the lessons of that infrastructure project, and I meant it.”
House of Commons14 January 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Or take Leeds, which is still the largest city in western Europe without mass transit; only a third of the population can reach the city centre in 30 minutes. We are finally consigning this sorry political legacy to the bonfire of history. No previous Government have acted as swiftly and decisively to back northern leaders. We have made the largest ever investment in local transport. We have given the go-ahead to road and rail projects across the north, and we are allocating billions of pounds in pothole funding to local leaders across this Parliament. Today, Mr Speaker, we are going further. After years of under-investment in the north’s rail network, I am proud to announce that we will deliver Northern Powerhouse Rail. This is a generational commitment, building on the ongoing trans-Pennine route upgrade.”
House of Commons14 January 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“We had High Speed 2 to Manchester and Leeds—both promised, both axed—rail services have let down commuters, and we have a railway still reliant on diesel trains and two-track Victorian infrastructure. We had levelling up, the integrated rail plan and Network North—just empty slogans, and emptier pockets to pay for them. That gulf between rhetoric and reality has consequences. An unbalanced economy does not just affect growth; it strikes at the heart of the fairer country that we want to be. Political choices made over decades mean that a 40-mile commute to Manchester is a world away from a similar journey into London. Take Liverpool, which has only two fast trains an hour to Manchester; a direct rail journey from Liverpool to Manchester airport takes an hour and 25 minutes, when it is only 28 miles away.”
House of Commons14 January 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“With permission, I would like to make a statement on the Government’s plans for Northern Powerhouse Rail. I realise that I am not the first Minister to talk about transforming infrastructure in the north of England, and I get why people there are sick to the back teeth of Westminster politicians promising the earth and delivering absolutely nothing because parties, whether that means the Tories or Reform, lack ambition and are incapable of doing, or are unwilling to do, the hard yards of delivery. That ends today. It has been over a decade since the then Conservative Chancellor pledged a transport system fit for a northern powerhouse, and what came of it?”
House of Commons14 January 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Let me quote one more person: “NPR is a project I’ve long championed…so it is excellent to see the government backing it in full”. Those are not the words of a Labour mayor or a Labour Minister; they are the words of former Conservative Rail Minister Huw Merriman. Our plans are backed by the mayors, by business leaders, and by the Conservatives’ own former Rail Minister. That tells us everything we need to know about who is delivering for the north and who never did.”
House of Commons14 January 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“That plan was not worth the paper it was written on, so we will take no lessons on this matter from the Conservatives. If the hon. Gentleman will not listen to me, maybe he will listen to the people who run our great city regions in the north. The Mayors of West Yorkshire, South Yorkshire and North Yorkshire said that “we welcome the government’s once in a generation commitment to improving transport across the North”. The Mayor of the Liverpool City Region said: “After more than a decade of dither, delay and broken promises, this is the start of a new era, with a genuinely strategic approach and a government finally backing Northern Powerhouse Rail in full.” The Mayor of Greater Manchester said, “Finally, we have a government with an ambitious vision for the North” and a “firm commitment to Northern Powerhouse Rail”.”
House of Commons14 January 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“We have agreed with them that where they see opportunity to boost economic growth beyond the core scope of the Northern Powerhouse Rail proposals, we will work with them to agree local contributions so that the full benefits of this investment can be realised. More generally, this is a classic case of the hon. Gentleman writing the questions without listening to the announcement. We are delivering Northern Powerhouse Rail in full. We have set out our plans in full, we are funding NPR in full, and we will deliver it. The hon. Gentleman mentions the previous Government and their aspirations. Let me remind the House of what that actually amounted to—the plan that got the location of Manchester wrong on a map, promised new tramlines that had already been built, and diverted funding away from the north to fix potholes in the south.”
House of Commons14 January 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I cannot believe what I have just heard, to be honest. I know that the hon. Gentleman is standing in for the shadow Transport Secretary, the right hon. Member for Basildon and Billericay (Mr Holden), but I really hoped that he would have done a bit better than that. The hon. Gentleman talks about no budget being set out. We have set out £1.1 billion to be spent over the next four years, which is far more than his Government ever spent on Northern Powerhouse Rail in the 14 years in which they had an opportunity to make improvements to the rail network in the north of England. If that is the way the Conservatives approach basic maths when we are spending more than £1 billion, I can see why the public booted them out of office at the last election. We are working in collaboration with local mayors.”
House of Commons14 January 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Phase 3 of NPR relates to further trans-Pennine improvements beyond the trans-Pennine route upgrade, and we will say more in due course about our plans for Birmingham to Manchester, noting that the delivery of those plans will come after NPR has been completed.”
House of Commons14 January 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“The Chair of the Transport Committee is completely right that the proposals we are announcing today will deliver rail services for the north that are comparable to those in London and the south-east—a “turn up and go” railway where people do not have to check the timetable before they go to the station, because they know that a train will be there within a reasonable timeframe and that if they miss their train, they will not have to wait an hour for the next one. She is right to press me on when more information about the different phases will become available. The first phase of improvement relates to the corridors into Leeds from Sheffield, Bradford and York; we will be progressing with urgency on those, as well as the plans for the new line between Manchester and Liverpool.”
House of Commons14 January 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“[ Official Report , 28 January 2026; Vol. 779, c. 8WC.] (Correction) The hon. Gentleman should remember that we are investing across the north of England in improving public transport for the travelling public.”
House of Commons14 January 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“Of course I want to see the delivery of rail infrastructure speeded up, but I also want to ensure that every single penny that this Government spend is well spent. The hon. Gentleman asked whether I could reassure him about the stop-start nature of plans being drawn up and then delivered. We have taken our time to come up with a credible, sequenced, prioritised programme of improvements, in stark contrast to the previous Government. I can assure him that this is a plan for the whole of the north of England, and when it comes to our Government’s commitment to Cumbria, I gently remind him that the Department for Transport has invested over £13 million in Carlisle station, Cumberland has received an £18 million multi-year bus funding deal, and £10 million has been spent on a Borders rail viability study.”
House of Commons14 January 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I can assure the hon. Gentleman that we are getting on with this, and we will see these improvements delivered. I do not share his cynicism that we will spend the next four years simply coming up with a plan; the £1.1 billion that has been allocated is for land acquisitions and early preparatory works on the Yorkshire schemes. We will see delivery in the 2030s, with passengers seeing the benefits of some of those schemes, but I will not make the same mistakes as the last Government made with HS2. They let contracts before the scope of schemes had been finalised, which was essentially a free meal ticket for building contractors. We will take the time to do this properly and spend taxpayer money wisely.”
House of Commons14 January 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗
“I am grateful to my right hon. Friend for her contribution. She talks about Manchester Piccadilly; I am reminded of the words of Mayor Andy Burnham, who has said to me that he sees the potential of that station to be a King’s Cross for the north. I agree with my right hon. Friend that we need to resolve the issue of throughput through that station, and I will be working very closely with the mayor on plans for that station, to ensure we unlock the regeneration at the heart of the great city of Manchester that we are all united in wanting to see.”
House of Commons14 January 2026Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0Source ↗