Great British Railways: the South West loses out in HQ shortlist
The longlist has been reduced to six - but they're all in the North and Midlands
Last updated 5th Jul 2022
Grant Shapps has announced his shortlist of what the locations he thinks are the most suitable to house the national headquarters of Great British Railways (GBR), the new public sector body which is set to make things simpler across the entire rail network.
Back in October, the Secretary of State for Transport set out a competition to look for a new HQ - with the aim of it to be located outside of London.
42 cities across the UK bid to become the home of GBR. In the South West, places like Gloucester, Swindon, West of England combined authority and Camborne all put their names forward for consideration.
Gloucester's MP Richard Graham has shared the below tweet recently - saying he's "disappointed" to have not made the shortlist
Swindon submitted its bid in March - with the Borough Council saying its plans were supported by over 25 businesses and organisations across the town, as well as MPs Robert Buckland, Justin Tomlinson, Danny Kruger, Michelle Donnelan, and Andrew Murrison.
The successful shortlisted cities:
- Birmingham
- Crewe
- Derby
- Doncaster
- Newcastle-Upon-Tyne
- York
Well, the Government say they looked into the suitability of every location which submitted a proposal to create the shortlist as they continue to invest in levelling up communities around the UK.
They looked at how easy the stations were to get to, as well as heritage, rail network links, and public support.
A number of regional headquarters will also be set-up alongside GBR's new national headquarters, which the Government say will help with decision making across the rail network on a more local level.
There will now be a public vote from the shortlisted cities which will be used in helping the Government's final decision - this closes on August 15.
A final decision is expected later in the year.