Andy Burnham is being urged to reverse a decision made by his predecessor to cancel a major Nottinghamshire road scheme
A scheme to upgrade the A46 Newark Bypass has been scrapped (Image: Joseph Raynor/Nottingham Post)
The new Prime Minister has been urged to rethink ‘damaging’ cuts made in the East Midlands by Keir Starmer during the final weeks of his premiership.
The East Midlands Mayor says Andy Burnham, who she worked alongside when he was Mayor of Greater Manchester, has a “clear opportunity” to U-turn on plans to scrap a major Nottinghamshire road scheme.
Andy Burnham entered Number 10 for the first time as Prime Minister on Monday (July 20) after weeks of Labour leadership campaigning in which he pledged to deliver growth in “every postcode” of the UK.
Political and business leaders have argued that for those words to match reality, a rethink is needed on Keir Starmer’s decision to scrap multi-million-pound upgrades on the A46 Newark Bypass.
The previous Prime Minister confirmed that, subject to a consultation, upgrade schemes for both the A46 in Nottinghamshire and the A38 in Derby would be shelved to raise a combined £900 million.
The money was earmarked instead to partly-fund a £15 billion increase in defence spending announced by Sir Keir – of which nearly £5 billion remains unfunded.
Campaigners had lobbied hard for the A46 Newark Bypass upgrades for years and the previous government promised the scheme would go ahead in October 2025.
Given that a consultation still needs to be held on the scrapping of the schemes, the new Prime Minister has been told that he now needs to put “his money where his mouth is”.
The Reform UK MP for Newark, Robert Jenrick, has written to the East Midlands Mayor, asking if she can secure an urgent meeting with Mr Burnham on the issue.
In his letter, signed by several Reform Nottinghamshire politicians, Mr Jenrick says: “Not only would the upgrades have reduced some of the worst traffic congestion in the country, but they would have also created thousands of jobs and provided a major boost to the regional economy.
“You have publicly expressed your disappointment that these schemes were scrapped, and we understand why. The East Midlands was the only region in the country required to forfeit major road investment programmes on this scale.”
East Midlands Mayor Claire Ward(Image: Joseph Raynor/Nottingham Post)
The Mayor of the East Midlands, Labour’s Claire Ward, has now said she will be pushing the new government on the issue, telling the Nottingham Post: “I warmly congratulate Andy Burnham on becoming Prime Minister today. Having transformed Greater Manchester’s transport system with the Bee Network, he understands that reliable transport is fundamental to building successful regions.
“That is why the previous administration’s decision to strip vital transport funding from the East Midlands by shelving the A46 Newark bypass and A38 upgrades was so damaging.
“We recognise the need for continued investment in our national defence, but it is for government to balance national priorities fairly, not to leave regions like the East Midlands disproportionately impacted.
“Taking nearly a billion pounds out of our local economy undermines our region’s potential and holds back key economic corridors.
“Since that decision, I have established a cross-party coalition of MPs, council leaders and business partners to ensure that the East Midlands is heard as a single, united voice.
“There has been a strong consensus of support from MPs and councillors from key areas in our region, and we will be actively taking our case to Parliament, alongside Team East Midlands.
“Prime Minister Andy Burnham now has a clear opportunity to reset how the government works with our region. My message to him is straightforward – work with us, reverse these damaging cuts and give the East Midlands the infrastructure it needs to drive national growth.”
The new Prime Minister, Andy Burnham (Image: Wiktor Szymanowicz/Future Publishing via Getty Images)
Scott Knowles is the Chief Executive of the East Midlands Chamber, a lobbying group representing hundreds of businesses across the region, and he said: “Reliable, efficient transport infrastructure is essential in enabling Nottinghamshire, and the wider East Midlands, to thrive and for yet another piece of vital investment to have been halted to free up funds elsewhere is frustrating, especially when A46 improvements had already been green-lighted.
“We welcome the government’s defence spending plan and recognise its importance but such investment should not be at the expense of investment in the region.
“Nottinghamshire, and the East Midlands, should never be at the back of the queue when it comes to spending, yet we’ve seen it time and time again, like with the promised, but never delivered, electrification of the Midland Main Line.
“I would urge the incoming Prime Minister, along with political leaders, to recognise the value of this major route and reinstate the improvement works.”
The scrapping of the scheme does not just affect those in Newark, but also residents from surrounding areas and businesses and commuters from even further afield.
Councillor Neil Clarke, the Conservative leader of Rushcliffe Borough Council, said: “I’ve always said the East Midlands region has the least central government investment and I’ve campaigned for years to say we should have a lot more coming into the region.
“With that in mind, to hear that the A46 investment has been cancelled is just devastating. It just shows contempt for the people of the East Midlands by the government and the reason it affects Rushcliffe is because the A46 is a main arterial from Lincoln right down to the south west, but it also provides connectivity between the A1 and the M1.
“Let’s let him prove that he means what he says and let him put his money where his mouth is and re-instigate that investment.