Tees Valley Mayor Meets with Chancellor to Discuss Northern Powerhouse

Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen yesterday held a ‘very productive’ meeting with Chancellor Philip Hammond.

They were joined by the Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham and Steve Rotheram, Mayor of the Liverpool City Region with ‘ways to boost growth across the Northern Powerhouse regions’ top of the agenda.

Also discussed were:

• Further devolution;
• The South Tees Development Corporation – which was officially launched recently by Prime Minister Theresa May;
• The ambitious transport plans to improve road connectivity across the Tees Valley and the wider North;
• Making the North more productive and how the Northern Powerhouse initiative can support this aim.

 Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen, said: “The Chancellor made it absolutely clear to me that he remains committed to the electrification of the TransPennine Express line. This is in addition to a much wider £1 billion fund that will be spent improving rail infrastructure across the North over the next few years.

 “I also pushed for cash to fund my road investment strategy, which includes a new Tees Crossing, A66 improvements and a much-needed bypass for Darlington.

 “As with the Prime Minister’s visit to Redcar a couple weeks ago, my meeting with the Chancellor underlines the Government’s commitment to driving jobs and growth in Teesside.”