National Development report(wp/ebc):::
Prime Minister Boris Johnson will pledge to fund a new high-speed rail route between Leeds and Manchester.
In a speech in Manchester later, Mr Johnson will give his backing to the trans-Pennine transport link to "turbo-charge the economy".
It is claimed the scheme would cut journey times on the 36-mile (58km) route from 50 minutes to under 30.
The full details of the route are expected to be published in the autumn following the review into HS2.
It is thought the new route will be part of Mr Johnson's wider commitment to deliver a high-speed railway link across the north of England, which would cost about £39bn.
The previous government supported the project in principle but had not committed to investing in it.
But Labour cast doubt on Mr Johnson's pledge - saying he had failed to deliver on infrastructure as mayor of London.
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The idea of a high-speed, east-west rail connection in northern England was first announced in 2014 by the then chancellor George Osborne as part of his Northern Powerhouse strategy.
He claimed it would allow cities from Liverpool to Hull "to take on the world", but since then little progress has been made despite swathes of reports, announcements and pledges.In 2016 a report for the National Infrastructure Commission found the scheme needed "kick-starting" and concluded a concrete plan should be in place by 2017.
In 2017, Mr Osborne claimed Theresa May's government had made a "systematic attempt" to "eradicate all mention of the initiative".
The Northern Powerhouse Minister Jake Berry replied that the scheme "would happen", but failed to provide any details of when.
In 2018, a £70bn master plan announced by Transport for the North (set up to co-ordinate transport across the north of England) included HS3 in its plans for a new rail network, called Northern Powerhouse Rail. It was met with a mixed response.
Last month, the Department for Transport would not confirm when a decision on the rail line will be made, but did estimate it could cost up to £39bn.Labour's shadow transport secretary Andy McDonald said the project had been "announced time and time again by the Conservatives".
"With Boris Johnson's staggering failure to build a bridge across the Thames and an estuary airport I'm not confident he'll be able to deliver better train services between Leeds and Manchester," he added.
"What we really need is Labour's Crossrail for the North, from Liverpool to Hull and up to the North East to unleash the economic potential of the region.
"Just upgrading the rail between Leeds and Manchester - the same distance as the Central line on the London Underground - won't achieve that."
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