Figures showed yesterday that Teesport maintained its position as the UK's second largest port by volume last year.

The Department for Transport's statistics showed that the Tees and Hartlepool port handled 55.8m tonnes of cargo last year - two million more than last year.

The figures could boost Teesport's case to build a £300m deep-sea container terminal, which is expected to bring 5,500 jobs to the region.

Owners PD Ports were hoping the Government would halt expansion at southern ports and allow it to expand on brownfield land off the Tees - a plan which could have taken millions of lorry miles off the congested roads in the South, and provided an economic boost to the North.

However, the Government has approved massive growth plans for ports in Felixstowe, Harwich and London, and recently said in its ports policy review that Teesport's new container terminal was not needed, as the expansion in the South met capacity shortages until 2020.

Regional development chiefs have been pressing the case for a North-East terminal at Teesport for more than a year.

PD Ports, along with The Northern Echo, lobbied the Government to implement a national ports strategy before it made its decisions on the southern ports.

But its pleas have fallen on deaf ears.

The company hopes if planning permission is granted, it will have the container terminal up and running by 2009 - ahead of two of its rivals - with construction starting in 2008.

It would allow goods to be shipped in directly from Asia, rather than being unloaded in the South of England and transported to the North, Midlands and Scotland by lorry.