William Barter, Rail planning consultant

Is the Golborne Link to be ditched forever? That would hamstring journey times, while failing to free capacity over the critical double-track bottleneck between Winsford and Weaver Junction.

Or is there a mysterious alternative? Perhaps HS2’s Liverpool trains are to turn off the Manchester line and run via Northern Powerhouse Rail into the city? That would free capacity between Crewe and Weaver Junction, logically allowing HS2’s

Euston-Glasgow service to be doubled, albeit with just Phase 2A journey times.

Edinburgh could even be served by portions off the Glasgow trains, although time would be lost for splitting at Carlisle, as well as to power supply limitations for 400-metre trains (which is why the full Phase 2B journey time saving is so low).

If the link is ever to be built, the amended ‘Crewe to Manchester’ Bill for Phase 2B must include passive provision for the junctions at each end. To do otherwise would fly in the face of the Union Connectivity Review that suggested extending it, and frustrate the opportunity to provide a rail alternative to air and thus reduce emissions.

As ever with Grant Shapps, to make sense of it we need to know what he isn’t saying.