Extra £40m to get station over line

BEDLINGTON councillor has slammed “excuses” from officials over delays to the town's new Northumberland Line station.

- JAMES ROBINSON

Independent Group councillor Malcolm Robinson said the reasons behind the delay were an “insult” to the people of Bedlington’s intelligence.

It comes as councillors unanimously agreed to back plans to increase the budget for the major scheme by almost £40 million in order to ensure it gets over the line.

The additional funds are being provided by the council, the Government and the North East Combined Authority.

Much of the additional funding will be used to tackle issues around undiscovered mine workings, which have proved a problem throughout the entire project and have been blamed for many of the delays previously seen.