The next text arriving on my phone is the weekly update from Manchester.

TRANSPORT SECRETARY REVEALS MAYOR MESSAGES 'EVERY MONDAY' WITH LATEST ON NORTHERN RAIL PERFORMANCE

- PAUL BRITTON

TRANSPORT Secretary Louise Haigh says Andy Burnham texts her ‘every Monday’ to update her on the performance of under-fire Northern trains.

Ms Haigh said it was a ‘priority’ for her to turn around the level of service offered to Northern commuters in Greater Manchester and the North.

And a Greater Manchester MP said ‘too many’ people were now opting to travel by car or by taxi to get to work or schools due to continued cancelled trains. The updates emerged during a House of Commons debate after Ms Haigh delivered a ministerial statement in Parliament about rail performance.

As reported, Northern was last month told by Greater Manchester mayor Mr Burnham, who chairs the Rail North Committee, to ‘go back and interrogate every aspect’ of an action plan designed to drive-up its services for passengers.