HUNDREDS of new jobs and millions of pounds worth of investment could be created by the iconic new Mersey bridge, a Government minister claimed this week.

Transport minister Gillian Merron welcomed the Mersey Gateway as she viewed the proposed site from the rooftop gallery of Catalyst.

"I am delighted to be here to look at the project in detail and hear at first hand about the potential it has to bring inward investment benefits to the area and the wider Liverpool city region."

She met the team set to deliver the project on Tuesday.

Clr Tony McDermott, leader of Halton Borough Council and chairman of the Mersey Gateway Board, said: "We are pleased that Gillian Merron is taking such an active interest in the Mersey Gateway project so soon into her role with the Department of Transport.

"This shows how important this project is not just to Halton, but to the wider region."

It will be the biggest bridge construction ever undertaken by a local authority.

Public consultation will be held once a draft scheme is published later this year.

A public inquiry is expected, due to the scale of the venture.

The crossing is likely to be tolled and, if approved by the Secretary of State for Transport, will take three years to build, opening possibly in 2014.