THE North East Chamber of Commerce (NECC) has written to the Transport Minister to warn that cancelling vital road improvements jeopardises the region's economic growth.

James Ramsbotham, chief executive of the NECC, which represents some 4,000 businesses across the region said: "The Governments backtrack on its commitment to improve a vital artery linking the region to the rest of the UK means that for the foreseeable future the North-East will remain the only English region not connected to the strategic motorway network, and one of the few regions in the UK not seeing any major upgrades to its strategic road network before 2015. "This is added to the fact that per capita investment in North-East transport infrastructure is still below the national average, and also keeping in mind that congestion costs the North East economy, as a percentage of gross value added, more than any other English region. While the case for deficit reduction has been made absolutely clear, the case for widespread cuts to expenditure on North-East roads has yet to be explained.

"As the only English region with a positive balance of trade driven by exports across all sectors, NECC believes that the North-East can only continue to successfully grow its presence in foreign markets if connections to them are world class. Mr Ramsbotham added: "The North-East economy has been dealt a poor hand in recent announcements on road infrastructure funding by the Department of Transport. Deficit reduction should not mean cuts to investment in projects that support economic growth and can clearly prove value for money and we are in no doubt that this would add significant value to the regions businesses."

With much of the preparation and design work for the road already paid for, NECC also claims that cancelling plans has been a waste of public funds.