Commons Sense

House of Commons · Westminster Hall

Winnington Bridge Corridor

05 July 2022 · 1 other contributor · 3,448 words

Opened by Esther McVey Con Tatton

Responding minister: Eddie Hughes

EconomyTransportLocal Government

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Esther McVey raised concerns about winnington bridge corridor in Westminster Hall. A government minister responded.

Key points

  • Concerns raised about the need to upgrade Winnington Bridge, built in 1908, due to its unsuitability for heavy traffic and high maintenance costs.
  • Specific asks include support for a new Winnington bridge project, expected to create up to 2,000 construction jobs and 300 permanent jobs.
  • Minister committed to the Government's levelling-up agenda to spread opportunity more equally across the UK.

Key requests to Government

I ask the Government to support the bid for a new Winnington bridge project, which includes a new road bridge and improvements to local roads and cycle lanes. This would create £16 million in additional annual spending, up to 2,000 jobs during construction, and 300 permanent jobs, aligning with the levelling-up agenda.

How the debate unfolded

MPs spoke in turn to share their views and ask questions. Here's what each person said.

Opened the debate

Esther McVey Con Tatton

I am concerned about the urgent need to upgrade Winnington bridge, a single-lane swing bridge that carries three lanes of traffic across the River Weaver. The current bridge, built in 1908, is now unsuitable for heavy goods vehicles and mass car movement, contributing to congestion, emissions increase, and maintenance costs estimated at £1 million to £2 million every five years. Residents are worried about their safety and quality of life due to long delays and poorly planned roadworks.

Other contributors (1)
  • Mike Amesbury Lab Weaver Vale

    Commends the right hon. Lady for her excellent and impassioned speech on the Winnington Bridge Corridor, highlighting its potential to improve connectivity and unlock opportunities such as building over 1,900 houses and attracting £40 million of investment from Tata Chemicals Europe. I support the bid for a new Winnington bridge, noting that it will facilitate development and reduce congestion, especially amid rising fuel costs. The project is vital for redeveloping brownfield sites like Winnington Works and creating local jobs. Part of Northwich station collapsed a year ago, and progress has been slow. The development on the brown belt requires the bridge for any progress to be made.

Government Response

Eddie Hughes

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mrs Murray. As a civil engineer, nothing gives me greater pleasure than the opportunity to hear a speech about a bridge. I thank my right hon. Friend the Member for Tatton for raising this important issue and appreciate the work of the hon. Member for Weaver Vale as a shadow Minister. The Government's central mission is to level up the United Kingdom by spreading opportunity more equally throughout the country. We have already made good progress through initiatives such as rolling out gigabit broadband, introducing a fairer school funding formula, opening freeports, increasing the national living wage, recruiting more police officers and creating local mayors with powers devolved from Westminster. The levelling-up White Paper aims to reverse geographical inequalities and improve productivity, pay, jobs and living standards by growing the private sector in lagging areas and promoting a more equal spread of opportunities and public services. The £2.6 billion UK shared prosperity fund will trailblaze a new approach to investment and empower local communities to level up and build pride in their place. Cheshire West and Chester was allocated almost £13 million of funding through the UK shared prosperity fund, with more than £13 million also allocated to Cheshire East. The levelling-up fund provides crucial capital investment in local infrastructure throughout the United Kingdom, including £232 million awarded to 12 successful projects in the north-west of England—the highest funding award for any English region in round 1. We are investing in transport infrastructure with over £470 million allocated in recent years to areas such as Tatton and Weaver Vale. The Department is also delivering a smart motorway between junction 16 for Stoke and junction 19 for Knutsford in Cheshire, along with significant funding for rail infrastructure improvement.

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