Prime Minister hints at announcement on A46 bypass

The Prime Minister has said there will be an announcement soon over the future of the upgrade of the A46 bypass around Newark.

Andy Burnham also promised there was "no way" the East Midlands would lose out when it came to infrastructure projects in general.

Complaints the region was being "defunded" arose after former Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer announced in June that some transport projects would be abandoned - but the only two named were the A38 in Derbyshire and A46 in Nottinghamshire.

Burnham acknowledged reports the A46 project had gone out for retendering and said "a lot of work has been going on to see what's possible and further announcements will be made in due course".

Earlier this month, East Midlands Councils (EMC), which represents 39 local authorities, said it "strongly" opposed the cancellations and pointed out the region already had the lowest level of transport spending in the UK.

Taken together with the pausing of Midland Mainline electrification last year, the organisation calculated the East Midlands was losing £2.5bn of investment.

Questioned by the BBC on the issue, he said: "I did say when I came in that I was prepared to look at those decisions again and asked the team here at Number 10 North to see if there was a way of taking them forward.

"So I can't confirm that for you today.

"All I can say is a lot of work has been going on to see what's possible and further announcements will be made in due course. "

He also gave a wider commitment on infrastructure spending across the region.

"I've always been one who said it's crucial that the English regions are fairly and properly funded, particularly when it comes to big infrastructure and transport infrastructure," he said.

"Which is why I set up Number 10 North. It's there at the disposal of the East Midlands and I give everyone my word - give me a bit of time to look at the infrastructure needs, but there is no way that I will allow a situation where the East Midlands is neglected or defunded, to use that word. It's crucial to the country's growth.

"Great British Railway is going to be headquartered in Derby, we've got Alstom, we've got Rolls-Royce, we've got so many big employers across the East Midlands, and it's our job to make sure that that growth story can build in the coming decade, and that requires the infrastructure to support it."

Burnham also spoke about local government reorganisation, which was set to abolish district and borough councils, until it was paused on 7 September.

Asked about when any new proposals might emerge, he said: "First we've got to talk to people and we've got to work out now a way forward from where we are.

"I'm not somebody who just imposes it. I come from a devolution background myself. Devolution is meaningless if it's just central government dictating and that's not what I will do.

"I'm always prepared to talk to people."

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