Metro Mayor invites ministers to “hear Northern voices”

Liverpool City Region Mayor Steve Rotheram

Steve Rotherham, the Liverpool City Region Metro Mayor, has responded to accusations from ministers that northern Mayors are “scaremongering,” by inviting them to attend the proposed Northern Rail Summit next month.

The summit has been called by Northern political and business leaders in response to Government announcements this week cancelling the electrification of the Manchester to Leeds line, whilst affirming support for London’s Crossrail 2.

The announcement caused widespread consternation across the Northern regions with political and business leaders expressing concern, whilst think tank IPPR North immediately started an online petition in support of the Northern Powerhouse Rail proposal.

Secretary of State for Transport, Chris Grayling, and Northern Powerhouse Minister, Jake Berry, both accused Northern leaders of trying to make political mischief; a claim refuted by Rotheram.

He said: “The Government created this situation and the reaction across the North from politicians of all parties, business leaders and wider stakeholders reflects deep-seated unease about the Government’s commitment to economic rebalancing. There has been a massive investment bias in favour of London and the South East and unless this is redressed the Northern Powerhouse vision is simply empty rhetoric.”

He says that over the last 50 years, while rail journey times to London have been cut by half, journey times between Northern cities have hardly improved at all.

Rotheram has written directly to Jake Berry, inviting the Minister to attend the summit which will bring together politicians, businesses and other key stakeholders.

He added: “Maybe something is being lost in translation but Jake Berry and Chris Grayling need to understand that this is not scaremongering but the expression of genuine and well-founded concern. I am inviting them to this event so they can hear first-hand what people in the North think.

“This is an honest and constructive invitation that gives them a platform to reassure people in the North, and the chance to work out how we can come together to deliver Northern Powerhouse Rail which was, of course, one of the Conservative’s major manifesto pledges.

“To borrow a rail analogy, there is a genuine willingness across our region to get on board with the Northern Powerhouse, but we need Government to be clear about the destination and the timetable.”

Read the full letter below:

Dear Jake

Re: Northern Powerhouse rail/ Crossrail 2

I am writing in light of the Secretary of State for Transport’s investment announcements last Friday and on Monday, the controversy this has created amongst political and business leaders in the North of England, and your subsequent comments reported in the Manchester Evening News earlier today.

Whilst I appreciate you need to mitigate the fallout from Mr Grayling’s ill-judged intervention, I think it is wrong to dismiss concerns raised simply as ‘scared mongering’, especially when they have been expressed by the general public, businesses and organisations across the entire North and reflect deep and genuine concern about the serious implications of these polarising announcements.

If the Government had thought that Parliamentary recess was a good opportunity to bury bad news, a widespread coalition of interests in the North have signalled that we will not allow this to happen.

Devolution, City Deals and the Northern Powerhouse are all important and worthy initiatives, but ultimately they are only meaningful if the concept is matched by a determination to invest in the rebalancing of the economy the Government claims it wants to achieve.

The Government’s rhetoric needs to be matched by its actions, but Mr Grayling’s comments have been widely interpreted as evidence of ‘business as usual’ when it comes to the historic southern bias of transport investment.

Binning electrification plans for the North in one breath, and giving a green light for Crossrail 2 in the next is either politically naïve, or purposely designed to create a reaction. If the Government remains seriously committed to re-balancing the UK economy, then it should quickly reassert its manifesto commitment by re-prioritising Northern Powerhouse rail.

Private off-the-record conversations with Ministers designed to calm fears will not soothe the growing angst.

In a spirit of constructive dialogue, I would like to provide a platform for an announcement by inviting you, or indeed the Secretary of State for Transport, to attend a summit meeting with fellow leaders and business from all sectors across the North, which we intend to convene during August. We see this as a transparent and positive opportunity to start inclusive engagement about ‘how’ and ‘when’ this crucially important national infrastructure project will be delivered.

I would be grateful if you could confirm your willingness and availability to attend the proposed event. We are currently looking at dates between 23rd and 30th August, but are quite willing to be flexible in order to facilitate attendance by a member of the Government.

I very much look forward to hearing from you.

Yours sincerely

Steve Rotheram
Metro Mayor, Liverpool City Region

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