Northerners urged to be wary of 'glib' Tory promises

The Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham has urged new Conservative voters in the north of England to be wary of promises to invest tens of billions in the region’s infrastructure.

Following the General Election, in which many former Labour stronghold constituencies were won by Tory candidates, Prime Minister Boris Johnson promised to ‘level up’ the UK by ‘investing in better infrastructure, better education and fantastic modern technology’ across the country, with many pointing to the potential for up to £100 billion in additional capital spending to released over the next five years - although £78 billion of such funding has not yet been allocated.

On the new government’s to-do list will certainly be spending on Northern Powerhouse Rail, as well as fulfilment on promises made on the election campaign trail, including rail links to remote ports, new nuclear reactors and train stations. Transport for the North wants the government to fund its £70 billion plan to upgrade road and rail connections, including £39 billion for Northern Powerhouse Rail.

However, while Burnham broadly welcomed Johnson’s sentiment, he warned that such promises were easier to make than deliver. He said he would like the government to commit funds now to reduce homelessness and to subsidise bus services so they are as cheap as in London.

He said: “If there is a positive to take from last week, and it’s a big if, perhaps it’s that the political classes are finally addressing the issues the north has long suffered from. But I would warn people to be wary of glib commitments around infrastructure because they are decades off. And sometimes these are easy pledges for politicians to make but they never come true because they are beyond the political cycle.

“The issue is people’s lives in the here and now. Clearly the north needs infrastructure but that doesn’t tick the box for the north, which is the way the Westminster world is portraying it now.”