The Greater Manchester mayor has spent the day in London, trying to convince the government to back the major transport project
Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham(Image: James Manning/PA Wire)
Andy Burnham says the case for a new railway line between Manchester and Liverpool has ‘landed’ after pitching his plans in London.
The Greater Manchester mayor has been in the capital today (May 14), together with his counterpart from the Liverpool City region Steve Rotheram, in a bid to convince the government to back the new railway line. They met with cabinet ministers and senior civil servants, including from the Treasury, the Department for Transport and the Department for Business and Trade to make their case.
The mayors also met with MPs to present a new report claiming the transport project could help boost the economy by £90bn.
It comes as Manchester Evening News has joined forces with the Liverpool ECHO to call on the government to support the project.
Under the plans, express train would run every 10 minutes between Manchester Piccadilly and Liverpool Lime Street with services calling at Warrington as well as the airports in each city. Journey times would also be slashed to just over half an hour each way.
The proposal also include building an underground station at Piccadilly and a new transport interchange at Manchester Airport.
Mr Burnham and Mr Rotheram were joined by former Tory rail minister Huw Merriman (centre) who chairs the Liverpool-Manchester Railway Partnership Board(Image: James Manning/PA Wire)
The mayors’ trip comes just a few weeks before the government sets out its long-term spending plans as part of Labour’s first spending review in government, with a 10-Year Infrastructure Strategy also expected to be published in the coming months.
At a press conference this afternoon (May 14), Mr Burnham said he wants a commitment to the new railway line as part of these plans.
He said: “What we would ask the government to consider is not to give everything we need right now. It’s simply to say that in the 2030s – hopefully starting in the early part of the 2030s – they will commit in the infrastructure strategy to a window when this railway will be built.”
Speaking to the M.E.N. afterwards, Mr Burnham said that the plans got a ‘good hearing’ from ministers, officials, MPs and Lords.
He said: “People have listened. They have pointed out the challenges in terms of the spending review which we understand.
“But we in return have said, look at the potential for growth here that gives the UK a bigger economy, more ability to fund public services.
“The prize is a very big one. I think that case has landed.”
He added: “There’s a growing recognition that the North West needs all of this infrastructure, both north-south and east-west and can’t be expected to rely on the West Coast Mainline and the M6 going North, or the existing city centre infrastructure coming through from the Transpennine upgrade.
“In both cases, there will be a risk of creating a bottleneck that leads to a block on growth.
“There’s a growing recognition that all of it is needed. The question is how we do it and when.”