Council leaders are seeking answers over the future of two major railway schemes in North Staffordshire – after the government announced it was axing 'unfunded' transport projects.

The proposals to restore the Stoke-Leek Line and reopen Meir Station had been backed by the previous Conservative government, and were set to receive money diverted from the cancelled second phase of HS2.

But Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced on Monday that the Restoring Your Railway programme would be cancelled, after a public spending audit revealed 'nearly £800 million of unfunded transport projects'. Both the Meir Station and Stoke-Leek Line schemes started as bids to the RYR programme by councils in North Staffordshire, which were supported by the area's MPs. They had received preliminary funding to allow more details proposals to be drawn up.

The government says that while the RYR as a whole was being axed – saving £76 million next year – individual projects would be reviewed by Transport Secretary Louise Haigh. Stoke-on-Trent City Council said it would be seeking further information about the future of the two North Staffordshire projects.

A spokesperson for the council said: "It is our understanding that schemes are likely to be assessed individually by the Transport Secretary. At present we don't know what this means for our proposed schemes, such as Meir Station and the Stoke-Leek Line, which are at varying stages of the business case. We are seeking clarity from the Department for Transport."

Last year, the then rail minister Huw Merriman and Jack Brereton visited the site where Meir Station is due to be built (LDRS).

But Mike Gledhill, the Labour leader of Staffordshire Moorlands District Council (SMDC), was not surprised at the decision to cancel RYR, saying that improving bus services is more important for the local area.

He said: "The decision of the new Labour Government to scrap the Restoring Our Railways fund is not unexpected. The Leek-Stoke line was one of the schemes floated in that project but, given the complexities of the scheme, the projections of significant costs involved and the lengthy timescale, it was never likely to be achievable in the current economic climate.

"When I became leader of Staffordshire Moorlands District Council, I made it clear that our priority was to work with partners to improve bus services in terms of connectivity between our towns and villages and the wider North Staffordshire area and that work is underway. The extension of the 93 bus route in Biddulph to operate more frequently on weekdays and on Saturdays and the 95 route from Biddulph via Kidsgrove railway station and Freeport to Audley are concrete examples of this and there are more to come, bringing more immediate and tangible benefits to local residents."

Karen Bradley, Conservative MP for the Staffordshire Moorlands, who backed the Stoke-Leek Line reopening, said she would continue to fight for scheme to go ahead. She said: "I was extremely disappointed to hear the Chancellor's statement where she stated that the Transport Secretary will 'cancel the restoring your railway programme' as well as many other transport infrastructure projects 'with individual projects to be assessed through her review'.

"We have shown that the Leek to Stoke line is economically viable and would bring great benefits to the Moorlands. I will continue lobbying and fighting to have the line restored. "

Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson launched RYR in 2020, saying that £500 million would be spent on reopening station and lines closed during the infamous Beeching cuts. But even at the time, critics pointed out that the money allocated to the programme would only be enough for a small number of schemes.

Passenger services between Stoke-on-Trent and Leek ended in 1956, with Leek's station closing completely in 1970. Freight services continued to use part of the line until 1988. Meir Station, meanwhile, was shut in 1966, with virtually nothing left of the building.

In 2021, SMDC was awarded £50,000 to pay for a feasibility study into reopening the Stoke-Leek Line, and in the following year, the city council was allocated £1.7 million for initial work to reopen Meir Station.

Last October, Rishi Sunak's government announced that both schemes would be funded under the Network North programme, with £9.6 billion previously allocated to HS2 being diverted to smaller transport schemes in the Midlands. But the exact amount of funding they would receive was never confirmed.

In announcing the cuts to the transport schemes, Ms Reeves blasted the previous government for leaving a £22 billion 'black hole' in the country's finances.

Ms Haigh says that a transport infrastructure review will 'make recommendations about current and future schemes', and support the development of a long-term strategy.

She said: "The financial inheritance this government has received is extremely challenging. The previous administration has left a £22 billion public spending gap this year alone – £2.9 billion of which is unfunded transport commitments.

"Communities up and down the country have been given hope for new transport infrastructure, with no plans or funds to deliver them. This government will not make that mistake. This government will rebuild our economic foundations while restoring transparency and public trust."

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READ MORE: Council working to reopen mothballed buildings at two Stoke-on-Trent parks

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