The Chancellor’s plans for long-tern economic growth have been welcomed by rail industry observers, because they include substantial investment in railways. Deputy chair of the National Infrastructure Commission Julia Prescot said: ‘The Chancellor’s speech recognises that half measures on infrastructure will no longer cut the mustard. Accelerating investment in line with the Commission’s existing recommendations is essential: the government’s ten-year strategy in June, and its planning bill, must now give investors and contractors a clear picture of what happens next.’