Burnham in Number 10 would give North a 'fair crack'

The leader of a council has said an Andy Burnham premiership could benefit the north of England, as the area is set for improvements to rail links.

Warrington is to become a stop on a new rail link between Liverpool and Manchester, which is to be built as part of Northern Powerhouse Rail (NPR).

Warrington Council's Hans Mundry told BBC Politics North West that he believes having a northern prime minister would make sure the area was "definitely in the mix" for "getting a fair crack of the whip" for future investment.

A masterplan has been launched for the area around Bank Quay Station, which would include thousands of new homes as well as commercial space.

Under the plans for NPR, a new route will run between Manchester and Liverpool with stops at Manchester Airport and Warrington.

"It's serious, it's going to happen but it's just a question of the time it's going to take," said Mundry.

Mundry added that Warrington was not originally planned as a stop on NPR, but the area got "drawn in" after putting a case forward.

"The economic growth that Warrington can offer to the whole region is what we want to benefit," he said.

Meanwhile, he also wants other parts of Cheshire involved.

In confirming plans for NPR earlier this year, the government said it was looking at a long-term ambition to build a link between Manchester and Birmingham, replacing the shelved northern leg of HS2.

With new Makerfield MP Andy Burnham, who has said he would bring back HS2 if he was in power, looking set to become the next prime minister, rail in the wider Cheshire area is being considered.

Mundry said: "What I would like to see in the whole overall plan is Crewe to be involved at some point, I think that's the missing part of the whole package."

Leaders in Cheshire East said they would "strongly support" any plans for a Birmingham to Manchester rail link, whether reinstating the northern leg of HS2 or an alternative.

A spokesperson for councillors Michael Gorman and Laura Crane, from the authority, said: "Either way, Crewe must play its central role in integrating the network and its associated economic growth opportunities."

Meanwhile, in Warrington a masterplan for 300 acres (121 hectares) of land around Bank Quay has been put together by the council.

It includes 4,500 new homes and two million sq ft (about 186,000 sq m) of commercial space, which the authority said could accommodate about 10,000 workers.

Some of the site included in the masterplan is the former Unilever washing powder factory, which closed in October 2020.

Modular data centre business, Platform, has taken on part of the site and is set to demolish some of the prominent industrial buildings next to the railway line in the coming months.

John Laverick, the company's chief operating officer, said their plans for a modular data centre meant what they were planning to build was moveable.

"We're more than happy to run the data centre for the intervening period before Northern Powerhouse Rail comes along and really regenerates this part of the town, which is great for Warrington, and good for us as well, so we think the plans are really good and we're very supportive of them," he said.

And for chief executive Neil Rustage, he has a personal connection to the site.

"It's regeneration of a town that a lot of ourselves live in, our staff live in, our families live here.

"I've got family who worked here in the past for decades so it's something that means a lot to us as a business," he said.

The local chamber of commerce is also supportive of plans to revamp the area.

"Here, in what was the manufacturing sector in Warrington, we are evolving as a town," said chief executive Stephen Fitzsimons.

He added that works on the site would also help inward investment to create a "first positive investment" when people arrive by train in the town.

And could having a northern MP in Number 10 really benefit the area? Leaders hope so.

"I'm sure Andy will do a good job for the whole country if that's where he ends up," said Mundry.

"The levelling-up of the North is something that needed to happen, we've got to make sure we get a fair crack at the whip and I think having someone from the North there will make sure we're definitely in the mix," he said.