The Northern Powerhouse Partnership is to undertake its own review into HS2 to press the case for the network to expand into the North.

The partnership said the review would “offer a northern perspective and to ensure that the North is properly heard” and will be used to inform the Government-commissioned Oakervee review of HS2 announced last week.

The organisation – which lobbies for investment in the region in a bid to rebalance the UK economy – also said it would make “bold and realistic proposals” for backing the project north of Birmingham against a backdrop of the “huge gap between what is spent in the North compared to the South”.

The review will be overseen by a panel of respected leaders including co-chair of the Northern Powerhouse All Party Parliamentary Group, Chris Oglesby, Councillor Nick Forbes, leader of Newcastle City Council and former chief executive of Manchester City Council, Howard Bernstein.

The review will also scrutinise the case for Northern Powerhouse Rail and how, along with HS2, it can generate economic growth and skilled jobs opportunities.

Henri Murison, director of the Northern Powerhouse Partnership said: “The Northern Powerhouse is of critical importance to the future of UK prosperity, and without improving connectivity it will be difficult to address the underlying reasons for our lower productivity.

“In the coming weeks, this group of distinguished leaders and experts from across the North will be addressing the key evidence to ensure that the importance of economic rebalancing is fully understood by those undertaking the Oakervee review.”

Former HS2 Ltd chairman Douglas Oakervee will lead a national review into the scheme, which the Department for Transport says will consider a number of factors relating to HS2, including its benefits, impacts, affordability, efficiency, deliverability, scope and phasing.

The final report – which will be sent to Transport Secretary Grant Shapps with oversight from Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Chancellor Sajid Javid – the will “inform the Government's decisions on next steps for the project”, added the DfT.

The report is due by the autumn.

Cumbria Chamber of Commerce has been lobbying for high speed trains to stop in Cumbria. It wants services to observe the current stopping pattern, which sees every train call at Carlisle and many at Penrith and Oxenholme, but as things stand, proposed HS2 services from London to Scotland will operate non-stop through Cumbria forcing passengers to change at Preston.

Although the new high-speed line is not projected to go any further north than Wigan, HS2 trains will continue over existing tracks to Glasgow and Edinburgh.