Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the eligibility criteria will be for the planned £300 million infrastructure funding to be connected to northern towns and cities with High Speed 2.

The HS2 scheme itself will already be positive for the North, delivering capacity, connectivity and economic growth benefits. In addition, in October the Chancellor announced £300m to ensure that HS2 infrastructure can accommodate future Northern Powerhouse Rail (NPR) and Midlands Connect services. This includes connections:

• in the Leeds area, enabling trains from for example Sheffield and the Midlands to travel via Leeds and on to York and the North East;
• to the HS2 Western Leg line to connect Liverpool to Manchester Airport and Manchester Piccadilly stations;
• in the Manchester area to enable NPR services from Liverpool to continue from Manchester Piccadilly station east towards for example Leeds; and
• to enable services from East Midlands to the North to travel via HS2, for example between Leicester and Leeds.

These uses of HS2 infrastructure could be reflected in the Phase 2b hybrid bill if practical and affordable propositions can be developed that deliver value for money for the taxpayer whilst ensuring significant benefits for passengers.