Confirmed – Northern Rail into public ownership from March 1st

— Laura Kuenssberg (@bbclaurak) January 29, 2020

Hear also the final decision on HS2 is to be made tomorrow in a meeting of PM, Chancellor and Transport Sec – mood music seems to pointing towards go ahead but, arguments don’t seem to be over and massive anxieties about cost

— Laura Kuenssberg (@bbclaurak) January 29, 2020

HS2 will be the most controversial

One thing about having an ample majority is that Johnson’s government is able to take decisive action without worry about getting things through the Commons and HS2 looks like being, after Brexit, the first big contentious issue to be resolved.

The juxtaposition of the Northern Rail news helps with sending a strong message to those voters in the north and midlands who gave Johnson his majority . Now there maybe a lot of detail to be resolved but we are now into an era when governments can do things.

I think HS2 is absolutely right. Its big problem is that it looked like a vanity project when in fact it was about providing additional capacity on what is the most crowded part of Britain’s rail infrastructure.

The regional messages here are important especially as so much public transport capital spending of recent times has been for London and the South East.

Mike Smithson