The secret to securing investment for mayors' Yorkshire rail plan
Hearing about another multi-billion pound plan to transform the North’s railways, I’ll forgive our readers for thinking they have read about this before.
You will probably be thinking about HS2, promised and not delivered, or Northern Powerhouse Rail, which feels like little more than a mirage at this point.
So why will these proposals - from Yorkshire’s three Labour mayors - be any different from other broken promises?
That was exactly the question I asked yesterday, in Leeds, and I got a fascinating response.
Lord Blunkett, a Labour heavyweight, said something about politics that everyone knows, but very few politicians admit.
“Sometimes political change is not just about the public profile, it's also about personal relationships,” the former Home Secretary told me.
“And we're very fortunate to have Peter Hendy as the Rail Minister.”
Lord Blunkett explained that he had spoken to his fellow peer, Lord Hendy, to find out exactly what the Government was looking for in big rail infrastructure projects.
“I was able to take his advice on which parts of our report will tick the boxes,” he said.
“His advice was very clear, it's got to be about growth and it's got to be about housing.
“It's got to be about connecting to those people who feel disconnected and feel that areas have been neglected.”
Lord Blunkett has now tailored his report precisely to what the Government is looking for.
He says the investment has the potential to generate 83,000 jobs and could deliver 210,000 new homes.
It also includes plans to better connect areas like Wakefield’s Five Towns and the North Yorkshire coast around Scarborough.
As Tracy Brabin says “if the exam question is growth, then transport is the answer”. We all hope the Government agrees.