A high-speed rail line running through Bradford should be built “as soon as possible”, the leader of Bradford Council has said.

Speaking to the Telegraph and Argus after a key meeting in Parliament, Councillor Susan Hinchcliffe said she wanted to see the Northern Powerhouse Rail plan accelerated.

Cllr Hinchcliffe had been on a panel discussing the scheme, along with Manchester mayor Andy Burnham and former Conservative minister Lord O'Neill.

Infrastructure body Transport for the North has already confirmed that a stop for Bradford is part of its vision for a new high-speed line from Manchester to Leeds, although its construction is thought to be decades away.

Campaigners are now pushing for it to be built at the same time as the HS2 line from Leeds to London and opened by the early 2030s.

Cllr Hinchcliffe said: “The Transport for the North plan puts Bradford firmly on the map.

“The plan has the support of all northern leaders and I was talking about how we accelerate Northern Powerhouse Rail connecting Manchester, Bradford and Leeds so that it is delivered as soon as possible.

“We have common cause across the north about making the case for investment and it was great to have so many MPs there, cross-party, showing a keen interest in next steps.”

The meeting in Parliament on Tuesday evening came as the House of Commons was holding a debate on transport funding in different areas of the country.

Bradford South MP Judith Cummins said the formula used by the Department for Transport to decide where money should be invested was “deeply unfair” and favoured wealthier areas, such as London and the south-east.

She said: “If Government targets transport spending in areas of high economic development, where people already use public transport extensively, they are reinforcing inequalities rather than correcting them.”

The Labour MP called for the creation of a new formula, and also for Transport for the North to be given the same powers as Transport for London.

Transport minister Jo Johnson disputed the accusation that the north was getting a raw deal.

He said the Government was investing more than £13bn to improve northern transport over this Parliament and every train in the north was being either replaced or refurbished.

He said: “This important debate I feel needs to be informed by accurate figures and that's why I want to correct some of the misapprehensions about the level of spending in the north and the south.

“Our analysis as a Government shows that over the four years to 2020/21, central Government transport infrastructure spending per head will be almost equal between the north and the south, with the north in fact about £10 per head above the south.”

The debate, spearheaded by Labour's Hull North MP Diana Johnson also saw a number of MPs from across the political divide call for more investment in their own areas.