A MID and West Wales MS has hit out at the Conservative Party after it emerged Wales is to miss out on a large pot of rail funding.

The anger follows the revelation that ‘Northern Powerhouse Rail’ will be classified by the Conservative UK Government as an England and Wales project.

Northern Powerhouse Rail is a project to connect northern cities including Liverpool, Manchester, Hull, York, Sheffield and Leeds with high-speed and improved rail, not a single meter of the track will be in Wales.

The project is expected to cost £17.2 billion.

Under the Barnett Formula (the formula in which Welsh Government funding is calculated), Wales is meant to receive a proportional share of spending in England.

If Northern Powerhouse Rail was classified as an England-only project Wales would receive around £1 billion in funding.

Mid and West Wales MS and Welsh Liberal Democrat Leader Jane Dodds MS said: “The latest development goes to show to Conservatives couldn’t care less about Wales and that Welsh Conservative MPs are utterly failing to do their job and stand up for their constituents.

“Welsh Conservative MPs should hang their heads in shame, this project very clearly is not ‘England and Wales’ and their lack of backbone is robbing Wales of vital investment that would not only better services for the public, but help to attract more businesses to Wales.

“Any Welsh person, whether they are in North, Mid or South Wales, will be able to tell you the abysmal state Welsh railways are.

“To deprive Wales of the funding needed to address these problems is to deprive Wales and its people of opportunity and potential for further development.”