NEW Prime Minister Boris Johnson will today confirm the government will build a new multi-million pound trans-Pennine rail route between Manchester and Leeds.

He will promise it will do for the North of England what Crossrail has done for London.

Mr Johnson will make his announcement on a visit to Manchester, promising detailed plans for the new link will be published in the autumn

He will pledge the government will speed up work on the long-awaited new line from the city to Leeds as the first step in a series of new intercity rail routes across the region.

In a major speech on his domestic priorities, the recently-elected Tory leader will say: "I want to be the PM who does with Northern Powerhouse Rail what we did with Crossrail in London. And today I am going to deliver on my commitment to that vision with a pledge to fund the Leeds to Manchester route.

“It will be up to local people and us to come to an agreement on the exact proposal they want – but I have tasked officials to accelerate their work on these plans so that we are ready to do a deal in the autumn.”

Mr Johnson will set out his vision to rebalance power, growth and productivity across the UK. with delivering 'Northern Powerhouse Rail' at its heart.

He will promise that its first step will be the Manchester to Leeds route, with detailed plans published this autumn following the review into HS2.

The new route is expected to cut journey times significantly and provide additional passenger capacity

Mr Johnson will also pledge to 'improve the unglamorous local services which people use every day' such as buses.

He will say his plans are about 'services within cities, not just services between cities'.

Mr Johnson will promise : “I want to help local leaders bring their local services in all our towns and cities up to the standards of the best. I want that to start now, with improvements that can happen in the short term, not just big engineering schemes that will take years.”

He will pledge investment in education, tackling crime,and improving technology.