The transport secretary has accused Greater Manchester’s mayor of ‘very effective political mischief-making’ in the row over London getting more money than the north.

Meanwhile northern powerhouse minister Jake Berry has dismissed the storm as 'rumours' and 'scaremongering'.

Andy Burnham spoke of his anger over the at-risk Manchester to Leeds rail electrification after Chris Grayling gave his backing to a £30m London scheme.

The region’s mayor said he was furious after the future of the huge northern project was put in doubt, while the Crossrail 2 scheme was given Mr Grayling’s support.

In a comment piece for the M.E.N, Chris Grayling accused Mr Burnham was grabbing ‘good headlines’ by ‘creating a sense of competition’ between the north and south.

He claimed that was unfair because the government is still ‘totally committed to working with Transport for the North’ (TfN).

(Image: PA)

Mr Grayling’s fresh take on the row comes after he sparked widespread fury by casting doubt over the long-awaited electrification - despite his predecessor Patrick McLoughlin insisting the plan was ‘at the heart’ of the Northern Powerhouse.

He also said plans to add two platforms to Manchester Piccadilly were being ‘reviewed’.

Anger among passengers and northern leaders was then heightened by Mr Grayling’s announcement that London’s £30bn Crossrail 2 scheme does have his backing.

Among dissenters was Mr Burnham, who said passengers were sick of ‘sub-standard rail services’ and suggested people outside of London were paying for Crossrail 2.

But, in a statement which fails to once mention the electrification project by name, Mr Grayling has now accused Andy Burnham of using the crisis for political gains.

“I’d like to congratulate Andy Burnham this morning on a piece of very effective political mischief making,” he wrote.

(Image: Staff)

Describing the mayor as a ‘skillful politician’, Mr Grayling said he achieved ‘good headlines’ for northern transport links by comparing it to Crossrail 2.

But he added: “The only problem is they don’t actually represent what’s happening, because the government is still totally committed to working with Transport for the

North on plans for Northern Powerhouse Rail.

“That’s why we’ve given TfN £60m to work up proposals for the scheme.

“My department is even working with them to help make the business case as strong as possible.”

Accusing Mr Burnham of ‘expanding his remit’ with comments on outdated cross-Pennine services, he said improvements were planned for both Manchester to York and London to Sheffield for 2022.

(Image: Staff)

Insisting his positions on Crossrail 2 and ‘Northern Powerhouse Rail’ were ‘exactly the same’, he said the former had been around for nine years, compared to the Manchester to Leeds route’s four, meaning plans for the southern scheme were more advanced.

They were working with London on a ‘fair scheme for the taxpayer’, Mr Grayling said, while finalising initial plans for the north and investing ‘record amounts’, including the £1bn rail upgrade which has already seen ‘improvements’ - electrification - to the Manchester to Liverpool line.

He said he was keen to work with Mr Burnham, but condemned him for ‘creating a sense of competition’ between the cities.

Mr Grayling added: “The reason the north is playing catch-up on infrastructure spending is because Andy and his Labour Party colleagues under-invested for years when they were in power.

“It should not – and never will be on my watch – a choice of London versus the north.”

Northern Powerhouse minister Jake Berry echoed those sentiments.

“Rumours that the government is not investing in transport in the North of England, or that we are not committed to the Northern Powerhouse, are simply untrue," he said.

“The Northern Powerhouse is a long term government priority, and we have already agreed ground breaking devolution deals with several of our great Northern cities. These will provide new powers and billions of pounds of investment to drive economic growth across the north.

“The combined authority mayors in the north are symbols of the Northern Powerhouse and we want to work with them to deliver our vision. I would expect all of the mayors to make the most of government investment through devolution and join with us to deliver the next phase of Northern Powerhouse, rather than take part in unnecessary scaremongering.”

However, a letter to Mr Grayling from one of his own Conservative MPs could throw a spanner in the works.

Chris Green, MP for Bolton West, warned the transport secretary that doubts over electrification are particularly ‘difficult to take’ after the government confirmed its backing for London’s Crossrail 2 scheme.

(Image: Mark Waugh)

Mr Green, who is vice-chair of the all-party Greater Manchester group of MPs, warned him the upgrades were essential to rebalancing the economy.

“Transport in northern towns and cities has long lagged behind London and the south east,” he wrote.

“Electrification was put at the heart of the Northern Powerhouse after commuters here in the north have suffered for years travelling on packed carriages on slow trains.

“To be told that electrification in parts of the north now does not need to happen is difficult to take, particularly after Monday’s announcement that London’s £30bn Crossrail 2 scheme will go ahead.

“We cannot rebalance our economy and the north cannot prosper without proper investment in our infrastructure. I urge you to ensure that these essential modernisation works go ahead.”

A spokesman for the Department for Transport stressed it has not yet committed any public funding to Crossrail 2.

He declined to respond to Mr Green’s views on the matter.