FEARS have been raised that the much-delayed return of a railway station could be in jeopardy.

Campaigners have been calling for a station to return to East Linton for well over a decade.

Earlier this year, the various parties involved agreed on a proposal to see the station created, with a view to it opening in 2021.

However, fears have been raised that the rail halt project could again be delayed after the Scottish Government said that funding from the Treasury had been cut.

East Lothian MSP Iain Gray has already written to Humza Yousaf MSP, Scotland’s Transport Minister, seeking assurances that the plans for the station remain on track. He said: “I could not be angrier at suggestions that this argument between the SNP Government in Edinburgh and Tory Government in London could jeopardise East Linton Station.

“Humza Yousaf may be right that he has been short-changed and I wish him well in arguing for more but to be frank there is still over £3bn here for the next rail programme and he promised us East Linton would be built out of this money.

“East Lothian has had next to nothing out of this Government when it comes to railways and all we are asking for here is a tiny fraction of those billions of pounds.

“Our council has played its part, rail campaigners have more than played their part and it is time we got a promise we can believe in from the Transport Minister.”

East Linton’s original railway station opened in 1846 as Linton Railway Station but closed in 1964, along with East Fortune.

However, there has been a lengthy campaign to see a station return to East Linton, as well as a station in Reston in the Scottish Borders.

Mr Yousaf said: “Any funding shortfall may impact on a much wider geographical spread of plans for the rising demand for Scotland’s railways. East Linton Station, Aberdeen to Inverness, Reston Station and the Far North Line are illustrative of projects which could be adversely affected by any reduction in capital funding.

“We hope Mr Gray will now join our calls for the UK Government to overturn their decision of daylight robbery by reducing Scotland’s railway funding by £600m.

“However, I have recently assured the chairman of Rail Action Group East of Scotland and reaffirmed the Scottish Government’s commitment to delivering the station at East Linton as part of the wider East Coast Main Line development programme. Indeed, that is why we have assumed the role of client, in agreement with East Lothian Council, and are covering the funding shortfall.

“We acknowledge the frustrations felt by those campaigning for the station and, as I have said many times previously, it is our intention and desire to build these stations as early in the next funding period (2019-2024) as possible.”