Transport Secretary confirms plans for high speed rail

McLoughlin said that supporting growth in the north and creating a Northern powerhouse to rebalance the economy were a vital part of the government’s long term economic plan.

The Transport Secretary described the general election result as “a massive vote of confidence in favour of HS2”, the high speed railway to link the north and south of England. He confirmed that both HS2 and east to west rail links will be at the centre of the governments plans, with a £13 billion investment in transforming the transport infrastructure of the north.

As a part of this transformation, Transport for the North (TfN), a body established by the government to work towards delivering a Northern Transport Strategy, will have a new independent chair to speak on behalf of the north.

McLoughlin said: “So the argument has been won. HS2 will be built, the full ‘Y’ network, from London to Birmingham and Birmingham to Manchester and Leeds, with construction starting in just two years.

“HS2 will change the transport architecture of the north. But it will also change the economic architecture.”

He added: “This is the best opportunity in well over a century to level the playing field between north and south. Not by dragging London down, but by firing up the rest of the country - the east and west midlands and the new Northern Powerhouse – with transport connections that match the very best in Europe.

“We are a One Nation government that will bring our country together. That means ensuring this recovery reaches all parts of our country: from north to south, from east to west.”

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