The new transport secretary has stepped back from pledges by former Prime Minister Liz Truss that Northern Powerhouse Rail (NPR) would be delivered ‘in full'.

In the Integrated Rail Plan for the North and Midlands, published last year, the Government opted for a cut-down version of the trans-Pennine rail project, priced at £17bn, as opposed to the plans costing £43bn put forward by sub-national transport body Transport for the North.