THE battle to get Government support for the expansion of Teesport received a boost when Mr Blair said it "obviously has a very good case".
The port's owner wants to invest £300m of private money to create a deep water container terminal, which could create 7,000 jobs.
Redcar MP Vera Baird has said it would "very nearly solve our unemployment problems" and Middlesbrough mayor Ray Mallon has said Government support would be "the single most important step" to closing the North-South divide.
However, with three southern ports - Felixstowe, Harwich and London - having already put in applications to provide similar facilities, Mr Blair was wary of prejudicing the planning process.
He said: "Teesport obviously has a very good case, but my problem is that planning applications have to be decided according to certain rules and I can't comment on individual applications."
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