THE general election was a “massive vote of confidence” in plans to bring high-speed rail to Yorkshire, the Transport Secretary claimed.

Speaking in Leeds, Patrick McLoughlin pledged to forge ahead with introducing 225mph trains to London – so-called High Speed 2 (HS2) - with work to start in 2017.

And he vowed that ending the “decades old economic gap between North and South” was his priority, with £13bn set aside for better Northern transport by 2020.

Mr McLoughlin said: “Nothing is more important to this government than a healthy economy which benefits all working people.

“It means rebalancing our economy and building the Northern Powerhouse. We will not waste a moment getting on with the task.”

At the election, all three major parties backed the legislation to build and operate the first phase of HS2, between London and Birmingham, by 2026.

A ‘Y-shaped’ network will deliver extra lines to Leeds and Manchester, but not until 2033, after calls to start work from the North - as well as from London – were rebuffed.

Details of phase two, from Birmingham to Leeds, will be announced later this year and could include speeding up construction of the Sheffield to Leeds section.

Ministers are also keen to improve rail services and times across the Pennines, which they now describe as “building on the concept of High Speed 3 (HS3)”.