Rishi has joined forces with another Northern MP to call for a key road upgrade to go ahead..
Rishi and Tim Farron, Lib-Dem MP for Westmorland and Lonsdale in Cumbria, have written to the Prime Minister to make the case for work on the A66 from Penrith to Scotch Corner.
In the joint letter, the two MPs said 12 people had died in 2023 along the stretch of road and it was vital that scheme went ahead to improve safety.
The scheme, known as the Northern Trans-Pennine Project, was first proposed in 2016 and had been given the go-ahead by Rishi's government in March.
However, the new Labour government announced it was reviewing all major infrastructure plans.
The MPs fear the £1.4bn scheme may be scrapped and have requested a meeting with Sir Kier Starmer .
In their letter, the MPs told Sir Kier there had been 198 accidents between 2018 and 2023 along the Penrith to Scotch Corner stretch of the A66.
They wrote: "We hope to persuade you to commit to backing this project with the funding it needs. The longer it is left under review, the longer our constituents are left in uncertainty, and the longer preventable accidents will continue. You can – and must – act swiftly to stop these horrifying accidents."
