PLANS to create a direct rail link between Carlisle and Edinburgh through the Scottish borders should be pursued with 'renewed energy', an MP has said.

Carlisle MP Julie Minns has led calls to ‘press ahead’ with a feasibility study on extending the Border Railway line to Carlisle.

The previous Conservative Government allocated £10million in April 2023 for a feasibility study into extending the Borders Railways into Cumbria, finishing at Carlisle.

Campaigners have long fought for the line, which reopened in 2015, to be extended from current terminus, Tweedbank, down to Carlisle, via stations such as Longtown, Hawick and St Boswells.

The line was originally closed during the infamous Beeching Cuts in the 1960s and the area has been dogged by poor public transport links ever since.

For much of its length, campaigners say, the new line would reuse the disused alignment of the old Waverley Route.

A recent report from the Borderlands Partnership, which is made up of the local authorities from across the region, said that extending the Borders Railway to Carlisle would be the ‘best solution’ to help solve the area’s notorious transport connection difficulties.

Julie Minns recently met with the campaign for Borders Rail and has called for ‘renewed energy’ in the project.

"I was pleased to meet with the Campaign for Borders Rail recently,” said Ms Minns.

“I think they are an impressive organisation who have put a lot of work into building support for extending the rail links across the border between Carlisle and Tweedbank.

"I fully support their calls to press ahead with the feasibility study which was first promised in 2021 by the Borderlands Growth Deal. It is frustrating that delays were allowed to drag on by the Tory government in Westminster and SNP in Holyrood.

"We now have a chance to look at this with renewed energy. I would hope that Keir Starmer's commitment to resetting our relationship with the devolved Scottish government will allow us to make some progress in realising this opportunity."

READ MORE: Frustration over delay of Borders Railway decision

Despite having the support of the local MP, there has been concern over the future of the study.

Labour have put the brakes on a number of large-scale transport infrastructure projects since winning the election in July which the party claims will help fix the ‘dire’ state of the public finances.

Large-scale projects which have question marks hanging over them include the proposed dualling of the A66, which was approved by the previous government.

The prime minister refused to commit to the dualling of the A66 when asked by Westmorland and Lonsdale MP, Tim Farron during prime minister’s questions (PMQs) in the House of Commons.

In his response, Keir Starmer thanked Mr Farron for ‘raising the issue’ but did not commit to the future of the project and said that the government will give an update ‘as soon as we can’.

“We have inherited a broken economy,” said Mr Starmer in response.

“We have to review what we are spending money on and we are going through that review and will report back as soon as we can.”