Chancellor to pledge new funds for 'Northern Powerhouse' at Tory conference

Chancellor Philip Hammond was said to be preparing to announce an additional £300m in funding towards the improvement of rail links in the north of England at an upcoming Conservative Party conference in Manchester.

Plans to electrify the Trans-Pennine route had been in doubt, but the new money would see the High-Speed Two (HS2) rail line meet up with faster trains destined for the likes of Liverpool, Manchester, Sheffield, Leeds and York after its departure from London.

Aside from the so-called 'Northern Powerhouse' rail funding, Hammond was also expected to announce the allocation of £100m for 33 new road schemes across north-east and north-west England, as well as Yorkshire and Humber.

A transcript of the Chancellor's speech released ahead of time also suggested Hammond would use the opportunity to launch a defence of free market economics, which he would say was coming under attack from Jeremy Corbyn of the Labour Party.

"Our economy is not broken: it is fundamentally strong," the speech read.

"And while no-one suggests a market economy is perfect, it is the best system yet designed for making people steadily better off over time and underpinning strong and sustainable public services for everyone."

Speaking to BBC radio on Monday, the Chancellor also suggested the 22 November Budget would allow room to help businesses: "What I've said in previous fiscal events is we have the flexibility to respond to support the economy through what is a very difficult period as we negotiate our exit from the European Union.

"We will have to be prepared to support the economy as necessary throughout this period."