The Northern Echo spoke exclusively to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak this weekend, whilst he was on a visit to Bishop Auckland.
Here's what he had to say about the Echo's key priorities for the North East.
Saving the Hitachi Factory
In March, bosses at rail manufacturer Hitachi raised concerns for its future, with large orders of trains staying on the books.
Hitachi stated that they needed a new order to fill its books to avoid a devastating crisis which could result in job losses or factory closure.
(Image: Sarah Caldecott) Rishi Sunak in Bishop Auckland's walled gardens on Saturday.
It was dubbed as a “fantastic example of world-class manufacturing” in 2023 by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak - but the factory could crumble without orders.
Rishi Sunak told The Northern Echo that his government is taking action to save Hitachi by "being committed to a really robust rail manufacturing supply chain, because that's important to our country.
"The investment that we're making in rail across the country is evidence of that, including in the North East, specifically on the Hitachi factory.
"The Transport Secretary has been in regular dialogue with the company, the unions and representatives to work through the options and do everything we can to make sure that the supply chain is robust and the factory can have a sustainable future."
Rishi Sunak in Bishop Auckland's walled garden. (Image: Sarah Caldecott)
A public inquiry into Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys (TEWV) mental health trust
The Northern Echo asked the Prime Minister commit to a statutory public inquiry into TEWV, a scandal-hit North East mental health trust.
Patients and bereaved families have spent years insisting that care at Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys Mental Health Trust (TEWV) is “not fit for purpose.”
A period of intense scrutiny at TEWV has seen it graded ‘requiring improvement’, a raft of critical inquests into patient deaths, and a prosecution by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).
The Prime Minister said: "One of them [the bereaved loved ones] is a constituent of mine, and its an awful tragedy when your young child has lost their life in that way, and I could completely understand the hurt and the anger from parents, and their desire to have answers.
"We need to make sure that we understand exactly what happened, not least that it doesn't happen again, as well as providing some clarity to all the families affected.
(Image: Sarah Caldecott)
"In terms of what we're doing, we've launched an investigation by the Healthcare Serviced Safety Investigations Body (HSSIB), looking at the provision of mental health services, particularly these types of issues, and they will be including the trust in their review.
"I absolutely wouldn't rule having a public inquiry out , but I think it's right that we allow this body to do their review first, and that is what they are in the process of doing.
"But as you know, we can, of course, always have public inquiries. They take time as well, and I think, in the first instance, having the HSSIB do the review is the right first step to get answers."
(Image: Sarah Caldecott)
Exam mitigations for St Leonard's school pupils
St Leonard’s, a catholic secondary school in Durham City was plunged into crisis in September when buildings were found to be riddled with crumbling reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC).
It was one of just two secondary schools in England forced to completely close due to the scandal.
With exam results only around the corner from the General Election, the Northern Echo Manifesto is asking parties to commit to exam mitigations for St Leonard's.
Mr Sunak said: "Of course we want students to reach their full potential, and we also want to make sure that they're safe when they're at school.
"All children now are back in face-to-face learning, and have been for a while, because that was the immediate priority was to minimise the disruption to their learning.
"All schools identified as having RAAC have been informed whether they will be added to the School Rebuilding Programme - as St Leonards has - or whether they will receive grant funding to refurbish the necessary areas.
"And I know that in the case of St Leonards, officials in the Department have worked closely with the school, and I am grateful to all of them for their close collaboration.
"We have also worked closely with Ofqual in addition to asking awarding organisations to agree longer extensions for coursework and non-examined assessment. Where non-exam assessments like practical coursework have been impacted, schools may apply for special consideration."
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak playing 'Splat the Rat' at a village fete in Great Ayton, Yorkshire while on the General Election campaign trail. (Image: PA)
Reducing knife crime in North East communities
In the North East, knife crime continues to be a stain on our community. As part of The Northern Echo's manifesto, we have urged the next government to step in and do something about knife crime after the general election.
Cleveland itself is one of the knife crime capitals of the UK - second only to London.
The Prime Minister said: "As a parent, I'd say these are awful crimes. They disproportionately affect young people, it's incredibly sad when a young person's life has been cut short getting caught up in knife crime.
"Firstly, we need more police officers on the street, and that's why there's just over 1,000 more police officers across the North Fast forces over this last few years, which is very positive.
"Then we need to give them the powers to confiscate knives. We have confiscated over 130,000 knives off our streets, and we will continue to give the police more powers. And then lastly, we've toughened up sentencing, and we will continue to toughen up sentencing so for knife-related offences.
"The last thing I'd say is I think one of the reasons parents have been really positive with me about our modern form of national service is because they think this will be really beneficial for young people.
"Not just give them skills and opportunities, but a sense of belonging and purpose. They'll actually be involved in something that's bigger than themselves, giving back to their community in a really positive way.
"I think this will help deal with this longer term, as well as help our country's resilience and security and foster a more cohesive society."
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak talking to locals at a village fete in Great Ayton, Yorkshire while on the General Election campaign trail. (Image: PA)
Tackling child poverty
Recent horrifying reports from the North East Child Poverty Commission have outlined how the situation in the region is getting worse.
One in three babies, children and young people across the North East are growing up in poverty - and the area has experienced one of the steepest increases in child poverty rates over much of the last decade.
Mr Sunak said: "I'm proud that since 2010 we've reduced the number of children living in poverty meaningfully.
"Obviously, there's more to do, and the best way to do that is to ensure that their mums and dads have good jobs.
"Common sense will tell you that, and all the research says that if you if a child grows up in a household where no one works, they're five or six times more likely to be in poverty.
"So the best thing we can do to stop children growing up in poverty is creating jobs in the North East, for example, through the Freeport, which is attracting investment, creating high-quality jobs for people.
Dentistry deserts
The Northern Echo manifesto is calling on the main political parties to commit to saving dentistry in the North East.
Waiting lists have been growing and the Chair of the British Dental Association has described the region's services as "hanging by a thread."
Reports have come in of families resorting to pulling out their own rotting teeth and waiting months to sign up or get an appointment at a dentist.
Mr Sunak said: "A few months ago, we announced our dentistry recovery plan with a few 100 million pounds more funding, which will create two and a half million more dentistry appointments across the UK, and that is starting to have an impact, making it easier for people to access dentists.
"It's also make making sure that we get more dentists themselves to offer NHS work by increasing the rates they get paid and offering golden hellos.
"And what we've seen since we announced a plan is 500 dental practices have started accepting more NHS patients."
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