Asked by: Lord Berkeley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government to what extent, if at all, HS2 Ltd will be involved in any part of the Northern Powerhouse Rail project.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
No decisions have been taken on the long-term delivery strategy for the programme at this stage. However, HS2 Ltd continue to be involved in the development work covered by the High Speed Rail (Crewe to Manchester) Bill.
Asked by: Imran Hussain (Labour - Bradford East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what targets her Department has set for reducing rail journey times between (a) Bradford and Leeds and (b) Bradford and Manchester; and how those targets align with the objectives of the Railways Bill.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Northern Powerhouse Rail will seek to create a turn up and go railway for passengers from Bradford to travel to cities across the growth corridor, including improving connections to Leeds and Manchester.
The government is learning the lessons from HS2 by taking sufficient time to explore and develop options, and so building certainty in costs, outputs and benefits, before confirming decisions on details such as journey times. We will work closely with local leaders to do that.
Asked by: Imran Hussain (Labour - Bradford East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of improved rail connectivity in Bradford on the economy, including its potential contribution to productivity, employment and housing delivery in West Yorkshire.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Bradford will be put at the heart of our plans for Northern Powerhouse Rail. Our investment in NPR will provide a catalyst for a major regeneration of Bradford’s Southern Gateway, which is planned to contribute thousands of new homes and commercial development. We will work closely with local leaders to help realise these plans.
Asked by: Imran Hussain (Labour - Bradford East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether Bradford will be included in the core network of Northern Powerhouse Rail; and when a final decision on route options affecting Bradford will be announced.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Bradford will be put at the heart of our plans for Northern Powerhouse Rail. The first phase of NPR, upgrades to lines East of the Pennines for delivery in the 2030s, will be focusing on electrification and upgrades that include the Leeds-Bradford corridor. We will also press forward with the work already in hand with Bradford Metropolitan District Council on a business case for Bradford station. We expect to reach decisions on the station by Summer 2026 and have made funding available to then move forward into detailed design.
The third phase of NPR will improve cross-Pennine connections, and the Government sees Bradford-Manchester as a key part of this overall programme. Further details will be announced in the future, once these have been worked through with local leaders.
Asked by: Imran Hussain (Labour - Bradford East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to her Department's press release entitled Multi-billion-pound drive to transform rail and growth across Yorkshire and North East, published on 14 January 2026, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of the business case for a new train station in Bradford city centre; and what timetable has been set for (a) completion of the business case, (b) funding approval and (c) commencement of construction of the train station.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
As part of the first phase of Northern Powerhouse Rail, we will press forward with the work already in hand with Bradford Metropolitan District Council on a business case for a new Bradford station. We expect to reach decisions on the station by Summer 2026 and have made funding available to then move forward into detailed design.
The government is learning the lessons from HS2, taking sufficient time to explore and develop options, building certainty in costs, outputs and benefits, before confirming decisions on details such as construction timelines. We will work closely with local leaders to do that.
Asked by: Imran Hussain (Labour - Bradford East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how the expected delivery timescale for a new Bradford railway station compares with other major rail schemes in the North of England; and what steps are being taken to ensure those schemes are implementing quickly.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
As part of the first phase of Northern Powerhouse Rail, we will press forward with the work already in hand with Bradford Metropolitan District Council on a business case for a new Bradford station. We expect to reach decisions on the station by Summer 2026 and have made funding available to then move forward into detailed design.
The government is learning the lessons from HS2, taking sufficient time to explore and develop options, building certainty in costs, outputs and benefits, before confirming decisions on details such as construction timelines. We will work closely with local leaders to do that.
Asked by: Imran Hussain (Labour - Bradford East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment has been made of the effectiveness of options to implement a direct rail link between Bradford and Huddersfield; and whether funding has been provided for the development of that link.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
We will be assessing options for Bradford-Manchester connections as part of the work done for the Northern Powerhouse Rail Programme on the Bradford station business case.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether plans are being developed to upgrade York Station.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The government has announced as part of phase one of Northern Powerhouse Rail that it will deliver upgrades between Leeds and York Station in the 2030s. This will be aligned with work being undertaken by Network Rail to develop a sustainable long-term strategy for the East Coast Main Line. We will ensure a coherent plan for the area, building on the work already in hand as part of York Central to maximise the growth opportunities through development and redesign of York Station.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much and what proportion of funding for Northern Powerhouse Rail is expected to be spent in Lancashire.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Northern Powerhouse Rail will provide up to £45 billion of funding to deliver turn up and go railway services between Liverpool, Manchester, Leeds, Bradford, Sheffield and York. The economic rationale is enabling these areas to function as single high productivity growth corridor.
The Government has not excluded funding potential future rail improvement schemes more widely for areas such as Lancashire. This is not within the Northern Powerhouse Rail programme funding and would be considered through other sources in the normal way, such as future rail network enhancement programme funding.
Asked by: Ann Davies (Plaid Cymru - Caerfyrddin)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the Welsh Government have made a request for Northern Powerhouse rail to be designated as an England only project.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
We are working closely with the Welsh Government following our major commitment to the NPR programme.
Territorial classification of specific programmes depends on whether the policy area is devolved to the relevant devolved government in each nation or reserved to the UK Government. Heavy rail is reserved to the UK Government in England and Wales.