Grant Shapps orders leaders to delay business case for Northern Powerhouse Rail amid fears parts of scheme could be downgraded

Minister Grant Shapps has told Transport for the North to hold off on submitting the business plan for Northern Powerhouse Rail until after the Government has published its report setting out how the scheme will link up with HS2 and other major infrastructure projects.

TfN planned to submit the strategic outline case for the multi-billion pound project to the Transport Secretary next month but may now have to do several months of extra work on the document depending on the findings of the Integrated Rail Plan (IRP).

And it is feared the IRP may set a budget that stops the most ambitious version of the scheme - which would include a stop in Bradford city centre as part of a new Leeds-Manchester line - from going ahead.

TfN and the Department for Transport are working on the project together as co-sponsors and while they have agreed on the section between Leeds, Hull and Sheffield they are still at odds over other sections including the Leeds-Manchester leg.

There is disagreement over whether to choose a £17bn route serving Bradford backed by civic and business leaders and an alternative costing £4bn less which misses out the city entirely.

And a recent report by the National Infrastructure Commission - which advises the Government on its plans for high speed rail - said it could only afford the Bradford city centre stop if it raised its overall rail infrastructure budget to £129bn.

Members of TfN's board will discuss whether to delay submitting the plan tomorrow, but have been told they cannot discuss it publicly due to a stipulation by the DfT that it be dealt with in a private section of the meeting.

DfT officials deny forcing TfN to discuss the item in private but a confidential report seen by The Yorkshire Post says Section 100 A(2) of the Local Government Act 1972 requiring the item to be discussed in private was "triggered" by the Government.

Mr Shapps' department, which has accused TfN of moving too slowly on NPR and last year set up an 'acceleration council' to speed up the delivery of major projects, says waiting to submit the business plan will ensure the project fits in better with its wider strategy.

The IRP was due to be published late last year but is now expected this Spring. In an email, the DfT's director for NPR Nick Bisson said his department would not consider the business case until the IRP is published.