THE Government has been urged to “believe in Bradford” and deliver Northern Powerhouse Rail (NPR) in full.

There has been a united call from politicians, employers and business organisations amid reports that major infrastructure projects, including NPR, are being reviewed as Prime Minister Rishi Sunak tries to find £50bn in savings and tax hikes.

The manifesto the Conservatives won the 2019 election on promised Northern Powerhouse Rail between Leeds and Manchester.

But last November’s Integrated Rail Plan was slammed as a betrayal when a new high-speed line between the two cities, via Bradford, was scrapped.

Under the vision, St James' Wholesale Market off Wakefield Road, would be the site of the new Bradford station. 

There was fresh hope when Liz Truss committed to building NPR in full.

In an interview with ITV Calendar, when she was Prime Minister, she doubled down on her support for the major scheme.

When asked if that included a full, new line between Liverpool and Hull, including a stop in Bradford,  she said: “It does.”

There are now fears Bradford is back to square one as doubt is cast on the future of NPR.

Business Secretary Grant Shapps told the BBC: “The line itself can deliver a 33-minute journey from Manchester to Leeds, quadruple nearly the capacity of that line, and do so without having to wait an extra 20 years beyond the delivery of what the upgrade can do.

“There wasn’t really much point in going and blasting new tunnels through the Pennines.

“It’s not true to say we’re not delivering on what we said we would do on levelling up the North.”

Bradford Council leader Susan Hinchcliffe said:  “We’ve got a plan for clean growth in Bradford and it includes a new station on an electrified line which connects us better to the rest of the North of England. 

“I fail to see why any rational Government, interested in promoting growth, wouldn’t be interested in working with Bradford to deliver this plan which would provide for 27,000 jobs and a £3 billion annual uplift to the economy.

“Soundbites are easy on the national stage but here in Bradford we’re working with real plans and real opportunity.

“I want to talk to Government about how to realise that opportunity in partnership with them. 

“They need to believe in Bradford just as we and the rest of the Northern leaders do. Only by collaboratively working with business, local politicians and national government can we deliver the positive change that our residents want to see.”

Bradford South MP Judith Cummins added: “The Prime Minister’s new Business Secretary Grant Shapps said today that “there wasn’t really much point” in going ahead with Northern Powerhouse Rail.

“Well, I say to him that there isn’t really much point in believing this Conservative Government’s promises.

“I have lost count of how many times this Tory government has promised to deliver a new Northern Powerhouse Rail line with a city centre stop in Bradford.”

Matt Edwards, leader of the Green Party on Bradford Council and the party's national transport spokesperson said: "This is another embarrassing U-turn from a Government that doesn't seem to know what it is doing. How many more promises are they going to break to the residents in our city?

"There is not a city in the country that needs the rail investment more than Bradford and instead of taking bold action we have another let down.

"Rail is an important piece in the economic future of our city and an important part of preparing Bradford for a low-carbon future."

Victoria Wainwright, president of the Bradford Chamber of Commerce, said NPR would help Bradford “fulfil its potential and allow it to shine as a city”.

She said: “The project is not one we have asked for in the North, it was promised to us by Whitehall.

“If Government is serious about creating a fairer and more prosperous North it needs to give it the same connectivity as that available in the South.”

Meanwhile, a raft of Yorkshire’s biggest employers and business organisations have today written to the Prime Minister and other key Government departments calling for Northern Powerhouse Rail and HS2 to be delivered in full.

In an unprecedented collective display of determination, leadership at West & North Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce, the Confederation of British Industry in Yorkshire and the Humber and the Institute of Directors, along with major employers such as Yorkshire Building Society, Provident Financial, Leeds Bradford Airport and Deloitte have signed the letter to Rishi Sunak.

They are joined by hospital trust leaders, university vice-chancellors, sixth form college principals and other business leaders, all of whom remain convinced of the incredible value both projects would bring to Yorkshire, the North of England and Great Britain.

Its signatories call for those at the top of Government to both deliver Northern Powerhouse Rail in full across the North - including a new station in Bradford - and to recommit to delivering HS2 to Yorkshire.