Northern Research Group manifesto calls for tax devolution, a rail line from Liverpool to Hull and 500,000 new homes

Rishi Sunak has been urged to appoint a cabinet minister for the north of England by a group of Conservative MPs representing the region, amid nervousness about the Conservatives’ chances of retaining the “red wall” at the next election.

A manifesto released by a caucus of Tory backbenchers, known as the Northern Research Group, called for more tax responsibilities to be devolved from Westminster and the prioritisation of an east-west rail line, linking Liverpool and Hull.