Saqib Bhatti MBE, Member of Parliament for Meriden and Solihull East, has written to the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, The Rt Hon Darren Jones MP, expressing serious concerns over the funding commitment for the Midlands Rail Hub.
The Midlands Rail Hub is hailed as the region’s most ambitious rail improvement scheme in decades. Originally proposed by former West Midlands Mayor Sir Andy Street CBE, the project aims to upgrade rail infrastructure across the Midlands, connecting 50 stations and serving over 7 million people, with significant benefits for local businesses and employment.
Under the previous Conservative government, then Chancellor Sir Jeremy Hunt MP confirmed full funding for the scheme with a £1.75 billion allocation. At the 2025 Spending Review, Chancellor Rachel Reeves MP reaffirmed funding for the project, calling it “the region’s biggest and most ambitious rail improvement scheme for generations.”
Despite this, Saqib Bhatti has questioned the lack of concrete assurances on funding delivery. In June 2025, he formally asked the Secretary of State for Transport and the Treasury about the exact amount allocated to the Midlands Rail Hub following the Spending Review. While Transport Minister Simon Lightwood MP mentioned £123 million had been released for the scheme’s first phase design, the Treasury’s Chief Secretary declined to specify the total funding commitment.
Mr Bhatti said: “I am deeply concerned that Labour’s spin doctors tried blindsiding West Midlanders about the Midlands Rail Hub. This announcement was lauded by Labour MPs and the Labour Mayor of the West Midlands – except there is one problem. Labour have cut the Conservatives’ cast-iron commitment to the project with no new money. So why were Labour MPs and the Labour Mayor celebrating the people of the West Midlands being shortchanged?”
He added that his letter to the Chief Secretary seeks clear assurances that the Government remains fully committed to the Midlands Rail Hub and is progressing support for the West Midlands region.