Bound to say I do think the term “vile” is a bit unsavoury.
Firstly and foremost Alex Salmond represents Scottish interests, you may not agree, but good luck to him, that is after all what he was voted in for, and what his own constituents clearly want.
I would welcome some of that passion from our own MPs up here in Greater Manchester who suffer complete amnesia and a failure to do some basic maths when they step into the hallowed corridors of Westminster.
Extricating any Government investment in The North is like pulling teeth compared to monies seen as a given in the South East. We may get all watery eyed when the relative pitence of a few million is spent on the Manchester – Leeds railway line but it is as nothing to the billions signed off on a whim for projects down South.
That said, If as reported the Government are not prepared to bank roll the surrounding infrastructure it will be somewhat academic.
If there is a suspicion of “smoke and mirrors” and LHR does indeed have to pay for earthworks beyond the M25 I’m not sure where that leaves the project anyway. HAL might have a seemingly endless pot of money but would that extend to what is currently an unaccounted budget figure of a min’ £5Bn on roads /rail etc OR like a few us do they think these costs might fall into an open ended bottom less pit, hence the CEOs insistence on getting the Government to fully underwrite this particular part of the project ? ….oh not forgetting that extra £500m heading North of the border !
Scots telling the English what to do….no wonder The Daily Mail is so exercised.