The Chancellor has hinted a full commitment to a multi-billion pound northern rail network could materialise in the Conservative manifesto - telling the Manchester Evening News his party could ‘comfortably’ afford to pay for it.
In a speech near Manchester Airport this morning Sajid Javid was asked by the M.E.N. about the Northern Powerhouse Rail project, the huge rail upgrade northern leaders have been trying to get over the line.
The full £39bn scheme would see northern cities connected up, including from east to west, but so far Boris Johnson has only firmly committed to the Manchester to Leeds section.
However Mr Javid suggested the Tories might now go further. After announcing in a speech to supporters that he would change the party's fiscal rules to allow an extra £20bn a year of borrowing, he argued NPR could easily be funded from that sum.
“I’m not going to announce the details of the manifesto today, but let me just say this about Northern Powerhouse Rail,” he said when asked whether his party's manifesto would include a pledge on the scheme.
“I know quite a lot about it. I think it’s an ambitious plan. It’s just the kind of plan certainly I want to see for the north.
“We have already set out our plans to invest in part of that and I’m very keen to see it go forward. We are working with the team behind it on refining a business plan.
“So whilst I don’t want to make an announcement on that today - our plans - that figure you’ve just used for Northern Powerhouse Rail is over multiple years. And so our plans would comfortably allow us, if we wanted, to all go ahead together.”
Northern Powerhouse Rail is a joint proposal drawn up by northern leaders and transport officials, who believe that joining up the north's cities is not only long overdue for people struggling on creaking infrastructure, but also that it will help to rebalance the economy.
It dates back to George Osborne's time in the Treasury, when he was won over by the economic argument for rail upgrades in the north.
A business case for the proposal is currently with government and prior to the election being called, Boris Johnson had promised a decision would be taken in the autumn. To date, however, he has only formally committed to the Manchester to Leeds stretch, a move some believe is connected to a potential trimming-back of HS2.
Mr Javid himself has previously made positive noises about the project, promising during this summer's Tory leadership campaign a £100bn ‘national infrastructure fund’ would improve northern rail links were he to enter Number 10.
In this morning's speech he said a future Tory government would be able to invest more in infrastructure due to ‘historic low borrowing rates’, later outlining to journalists that this would raise up to £20bn a year extra for major projects.
He was at pains to draw a distinction between his plans and those of shadow chancellor John McDonnell, who was also giving a speech in the north this morning about his spending plans - which include a £400bn infrastructure boost.
Mr Javid accused Labour of ‘spraying money around like confetti’, however, and using ‘meaningless numbers’.
By contrast the Tory plan to increase borrowing would be done responsibly, he said, also promising ‘spending restraint’ on a day-to-day basis.
During the question and answer session with journalists afterwards, Mr Javid also said it would be possible to cut taxes, arguing the strength of the economy meant he could afford the spending plans due to be fleshed out during the election campaign.
