By Richard Johnstone in Glasgow | 6 October 2014
Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg has committed the party to implementing the One North plan to improve transport link across the North of England and boost growth.
The £15bn plan, which was set out by five cities in August and included plans for a new trans-Pennine high-speed line, stated that major improvements were needed to create an interconnected economic powerhouse.
It also called for the upgrade and expansion of the M62, M60, M56, M6 and M61 motorways, as well as the electrification of the existing Pennine rail route between Leeds and Manchester.
Speaking at the Liberal Democrat party conference, Deputy Prime Minister Clegg said the party would help to develop and implement the One North proposals, set out by an alliance of the cities of Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle and Sheffield.
He said that for too long, the North of England had been neglected by central government.
‘To close the north-south gap we need better transport infrastructure in the region,’ he said. ‘This means better motorways and better railway connections. The Liberal Democrats will develop and implement the One North proposals advocated by local authorities across the region. We are putting our commitment to transport infrastructure at the front and centre of our election campaign in the north.’
Clegg, who told Public Finance last month that he wanted to free authorities from the ‘dank vaults’ of the Treasury, added the One North plan would accompany plans to localise control of funding for economic development, as well as increasing the fiscal powers of local authorities.
‘To build strong and powerful regions, not only do we need to devolve power and money, we need to make sure that they have the infrastructure they need,’ he added.
