The World at One
BBC Radio 4

Mark Carne, chief executive of Network Rail, has told BBC business editor Kamal Ahmed that it has become "increasingly obvious" that the challenges facing the railways are "really significant" - and that the public need to be told the rail projects will take longer and cost more than expected.

He says he's "working relentlessly" to improve the performance of the infrastructure. The railways are more reliable than they have ever been but due to the number of people using the railways, they are at "choke point", he adds.

The World at One
BBC Radio 4

The government has said it will delay or cut back a number of modernisation projects planned for Network Rail. One of the main lines being affected is the one running to Sheffield - the MidlandMainline.

Clive Betts, Labour MP for Sheffield South East, says it has become the "forgotten line". There'll be a great deal of anger in Sheffield, particularly amongst businesses, he adds.

Mr Betts says there is "cynicism" around the timing of the announcement, suggesting the government new of the delays and cost overruns before the election but kept it "under wraps" until after 7 May.

Norman Smith
Assistant political editor

The government has announced it is shelving key rail improvement programmes designed to "revolutionise the railways".

The move follows major overspends and delays by Network Rail in the government's planned £12bn scheme which ministers have hailed as the biggest investment in the railways since Victorian times.

It means the electrification of the Midland Mainline route and the Trans-Pennine Route will now be "paused."

The transport secretary also told MPs the chairman of Network Rail would now be standing down and no bonuses would be paid to the company's directors.

Labour described it as "a complete shambles" and "a catalogue of failures".

House of Commons
Parliament

Tom Pursglove - MP for Corby - says he knows what his constituents will ask him on hearing McLoughlin's statement.

"They will say how can you justify spending billions of pounds in HS2, when you're pausing electrification?"

The Daily Politics

London mayoral Labour hopeful Sadiq Khan denies that he has changed his mind on a third runway at Heathrow because of anti-expansion Tory MP Zac Goldsmith entering the race. Mr Khan says it all comes down to air quality - saying that the supreme court had ruled last month "that our air is illegal" and people were now being warned not to run on certain days. He says the best result would be an expanded Gatwick, a better Heathrow and a high speed rail link between the two.

Nigel Mills - Tory MP for Amber Valley - asks what McLoughlin means by a "pause of electrification", he asks "does it mean a cancellation?"

Mr McLoughlin responds by saying he will wait to see Sir Peter Hendy's report into the state of affairs at Network Rail before making a decision.

Tory MP Philip Hollobone says that the pausing of the electrification of the Midland Mainline  is "not good news" for his constituents in Kettering.

Paul Blomfield - Labour MP for Sheffield Central - added that the pausing of the electrification of the Midland Main Line would mean that the Tory promise of a Northern Powerhouse "will be seen as empty talk".

Mr McLoughlin said: "Just as in the north we have already seen electric trains introduced this year between Liverpool and Manchester; and between Liverpool and Wigan.

"Soon we will see them spread further. To Bolton. To Blackpool. And that work is underway. Meanwhile, in the south east, Crossrail and Thameslink are well under way.

"In Anglia we will bring about modern, faster trains to Ipswich and Norwich in the next franchise. For passengers in the south west the new contract with First Great Western will provide significant extra capacity.

"I hope to be able to announce news on further new trains for the region soon."

Patrick McLoughlin also said:

Electrification of the Great Western Line "is a great priority" says McLoughlin.

However on the Midland Main Line Mr McLoughlin said that "better services can be delivered before electrification, such things as speed improvement works. So works on electrification will be paused".

Mr McLoughlin says that Network Rail's current chairman Richard Parry Jones "will be stepping down". He says that Mr Parry Jones will be replaced by Sir Peter Hendy, the current Commissioner of Transport for London. 

Mr McLoughlin adds the next franchise for the trans-pennine route between Leeds and Manchester will "bring modern trains and additional capacity" but "current work on the electrification will be paused". 

Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin is making a statement in the Commons about Network Rail.

He said progress had been made at Network Rail, but he said that situations such as the chaos caused at King's Cross at Christmas was unacceptable.

More figures have been released today which seek to measure the average wealth of an average family. The stats suggest that the average weekly income of UK households is at an 11-year low.

Real-terms household income before housing costs was £453 a week in 2013-14. This was unchanged from 2012-13 and the lowest for over a decade. 

Figures from the Department for Work and Pensions show that average weekly household income in the UK has not risen year-on-year since 2009-10. Comparable records go back to 2002-03 when the figure was £461.

Image source, AFP

On the child poverty figures Chris Leslie, shadow chancellor, said:

The Daily Politics

Jo Coburn is joined by the chair of Migration Watch UK, Andrew Green, to discuss the latest political news including David Cameron’s trip to Brussels for the European Council summit. And they will watch this film (below) on migration from reporter Ellie Price.

Conservative MP Philip Davies and Labour MEP Claude Moraes will look at migrants trying to get into the UK, who have been protesting in Calais.

Labour’s Sadiq Khan will explain why he wants to be London’s next mayor, Frank Field will talk child poverty, and the Campaign for Freedom of Information director Maurice Frankel will look at the FoI Act after comments from Michael Gove.