A PORT boss has slammed moves to downgrade transport links across North East England.
A new Government report, titled Delivering a Sustainable Transport System, claims that large parts of the region are of no "strategic importance" in national transport terms.
The report appears to question the importance of the Port of Tyne in Sou
th Shields, Newcastle Airport and road links across the Pennines and to Scotland.
It has sparked an angry response from Port of Tyne chief executive
Andrew Moffat.
He said: "This undermines our regional importance, and also restricts the port's development as a national asset.
"Failing to recognise the impact of north-east transport routes potentially damages both the regional and national economy.
"Transport and connectivity are linked to economic prosperity.
"The north east has the lowest economic growth in the country, and one way to help address this would be to recognise the A69 and A1 as strategic national corridors, important not only for the Port of Tyne, but to the entire north east and Scotland."
Large stretches of the A1 are also left out of plans for the development of national networks to boost the economy.
A spokesman for Newcastle Airport said it was disappointed at the report.
Regional minister Nick Brown has warned transport secretary Lord Adonis that he could be accused of damaging the national economy by appearing to downgrade the importance of north-east transport links.
Lord Adonis maintains that the Port of Tyne and Newcastle Airport are not big enough to be included in the strategic transport plans, but added: "We intend to keep our definitions under periodic review and, should these gateways grow, they will be reconsidered in the future."
