The continuing growth of the Borders Railway, from Edinburgh to Tweedbank, has given a renewed focus to the Campaign for Borders Rail, with plans firmly in place for an extension to Hawick and Carlisle, should the £10m feasibility study pledged as part of the Borderlands Growth Deal prove successful.

Given the urgent need to deal with the climate emergency, and the part railways can play in social and environmental regeneration, I would like to ask the various candidates standing in the general election, for their views on this important topic?

Would the candidates support, for example, a reopening of the Border Counties Line to Kielder, Bellingham and Hexham?

Kielder currently receives over 500,000 visitors per year, and yet has no rail link, meaning all journeys must be made by road, with the associated environmental costs.

Surely now is the time to act?

I look forward to hearing the candidates response.

ROB TURNBULL

Hexham