Doubt over Tyne Bridge restoration after government refuses to commit funds

The government has refused to commit to paying the full costs of the Tyne Bridge’s restoration.

There remains major doubt over a final £6 million that had been promised for the North East’s icon’s ongoing refurbishment.

On top of an initial £35.2 million awarded by the Department for Transport earlier this year, former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak had pledged an uplift in funding to meet 100% of the costs rather than leaving local councils to cover the remainder of the bill.

Newcastle Central and West MP Chi Onwurah has now become the latest to challenge ministers about the pledge.

However, when pressed by the Labour MP in the Commons on Thursday morning, road minister Lilian Greenwood would not commit to honour the £6 million offer.

There was no mention of the Tyne Bridge in the recent budget and Rachel Reeves was also unwilling to give any assurances in an interview with the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

It comes after transport secretary Louise Haigh announced in the summer that she was commissioning a review of her department’s capital spend portfolio in light of an alleged £2.9 billion of “unfunded transport commitments” made under the Conservatives.

One major North East project, the dualling of the A1 between Morpeth and Ellingham in Northumberland, has already been scrapped by Labour after being deemed too costly.

In the House of Commons on Thursday (21 November), Ms Onwurah called on the Government to help ensure the Tyne Bridge is restored in time to celebrate its 100th anniversary in October 2028.

She said: "I do hope that the minister will be able to join us on the restored Tyne Bridge for its centenary celebrations in 2028.

"However, she may be aware that an uplift to the funding announced under the previous Government for the restoration has not yet materialised, and inflation and issues uncovered during the project have led to a rise in costs.

"Could she confirm to me that the difficult decisions this Government have made mean that the uplift in funding will be available for the fully restored Tyne Bridge?"

Ms Greenwood replied: "This Government’s manifesto was clear that we want to forge ahead with infrastructure improvements as part of our mission to kick-start economic growth.

"As with all schemes in the major road network programme, the Department’s contribution is fixed once the scheme is approved, and Newcastle City Council was awarded over £35 million towards the total cost of the scheme.

"However, I absolutely commend her for championing this important project. As she says, it is one of the world’s most iconic bridges, and we are happy to keep this in mind in the context of the spending review.”

Have you heard our new podcast Talking Politics? Every week Tom, Robert and Anushka dig into the biggest issues dominating the political agenda…