The U.S. Geological Survey said the earthquake was a shallow 10 kilometers (6.2 miles), with an epicenter in Myanmar, according to preliminary reports.
Day: March 28, 2025
PM says public transport system in north of England is stifling potential
Good morning. Keir Starmer is today promising to improve the north of England’s “Victorian-era” public transport system. Anyone reliant on trains and buses north of Watford will know exactly what he is talking about, and will probably welcome Starmer’s intent – while also thinking they have heard this all before from central government, and wondering quite what’s new today.
Starmer is on a visit near Huddersfield this morning and he is using it to announce what No 10 is describing as “a major transport package to improve the lives of people across the north of England”. It is worth at least £1.7bn, but the projects are not new, and Starmer is promoting a collection of measures already in the pipeline. The Conservatives claim he is talking about a series of initatives first announced when they were in office.
The north is home to a wealth of talent and ingenuity. But for too long, it has been held to ransom by a Victorian-era transport system which has stifled its potential. I lived in Leeds for years, I get that this has real-world impacts – missed appointments, children late to school, work meetings rescheduled – all leading to insecurity and instability for working people.
My government won’t stand by and watch. We are rolling up our sleeves, and today’s downpayment for growth is a vote of confidence in the north’s world-beating industries …
For too long, the north has been left behind and relied on a crumbling transport system that’s not fit to serve the great towns and cities it’s home to.
The government’s Plan for Change will end that and schemes like the TransPennine route upgrade will bolster the region’s neglected potential and make travelling between these historic northern towns and cities quicker, easier and greener.
The prime minister will today set out plans to make the Liverpool-Hull corridor an economic superpower – rivalling the Oxford-Cambridge arc – kickstarted with £1.7bn this year …
This comes on top of funding announced today:
Under terms of deal with Hobbycraft owner, 233-year-old brand will become TGJones
WH Smith is to sell its 480 retail stores to the Hobbycraft owner, Modella Capital, in a deal worth £76m, and has confirmed that the 233-year-old brand will disappear from the high street after a “short transitional period”.
Under the terms of the deal, the high street business, which employs 5,000 staff, will be rebranded as TGJones, while WH Smith is retaining its brand for its travel shops.