Grayling’s decision to wash his hands of the North’s transport problems is a huge insult to commuters and businesses – Andy McDonald

Andy McDonald MP, Labour’s Shadow
Transport Secretary,
responding to Transport Secretary Chris Grayling’s Yorkshire Post article on
transport in the North, said:

“Grayling’s decision to wash his
hands of the North’s transport problems is a huge insult to commuters and
businesses.

“It’s true that the North can play
a larger role in determining and delivering its own transport priorities, but
only if it’s backed with funding from central government – an unlikely prospect
while Chris Grayling holds the purse strings.

“The Tories have a track record of
underinvestment and broken promises. London receives £1500 per person more in
transport spending than the North, but far from addressing this disparity the
Tories are making it worse by scrapping upgrades to the TransPennine
route.  

“Many people will be furious at
being told they should ‘take control’ whilst the government pulls the plug on
hundreds of millions of pounds worth of improvements to the region’s rail links
and presides over huge inequalities in transport spending between the North and
South.

“The North needs its fair share of
investment, not words of encouragement from Chris Grayling.

“That is why Labour has pledged to
help transform the economies of the North, underpinned by a £10bn commitment
for Crossrail for the North.”

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