Minister commits to high-speed railway

LIZ TRUSS has committed to spending £26billion on a high-speed railway in Red Wall seats, as she criticised Boris Johnson’s “poor” record on levelling up.

The Conservative leadership candidate said she would build Northern Powerhouse Rail in full, marking a major climbdown on Mr Johnson’s piecemeal programme of upgrades.

In a swipe at the outgoing Prime Minister’s record on infrastructure investment, a Truss campaign source said: “Government has a poor record at delivering large infrastructure projects like HS2, so Liz will make sure it is done properly. It will be fully costed and planned, ensuring it does not go over budget or get delayed.”

Northern Powerhouse Rail, dubbed “HS3”, is a £43bn railway that will run from Liverpool to Hull and from the East Midlands to Leeds.

A separate proposal to connect it to an HS2 eastern spur, costing £32m, hasbeen shelved and despite Mr Johnson’s enthusiasm, his Government downgraded Northern Powerhouse Rail to upgrades that would cost £17bn.

Ms Truss’s commitment to building the programme in full will cost an extra £26bn.

The Foreign Secretary told Northern Agenda that the scheme would “bring better jobs” to Red Wall constituencies.

“I want to build an aspiration nation that unleashes opportunity for all, no matter where you live. We need to drive growth and business investment to bring new and better jobs to the North,” she said.