A daily newspaper has accused Liz Truss of “losing” the region it serves just days after making a direct pledge to its readers.

The Northern Echo has questioned whether the would-be Prime Minister can be trusted on its front page this morning after she proposed a new plan to link public sector pay to regional living costs.

Ms Truss later withdrew the proposal, which was set out in a campaign press release, after it was criticised by senior ‘Red Wall’ Tories including Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen.

The controversy comes after the Echo last week launched a coordinated campaign with other titles serving the North of England, urging Ms Truss and her fellow Conservative leadership contender Rishi Sunak not to turn their backs on the region.

Both candidates responded to the plea with answers to five “key questions” on what they would do to help people in the North.

But now, the Darlington-based daily has said the “lack of judgement” shown by Ms Truss “raises profound questions about her suitability to be Prime Minister”.

In an editorial accompanying today’s splash, pictured above, the Echo said: “Liz Truss has just lost the north. However she tries to spin it, at the core of her regional pay board plan was an attempt to drive down the wages of public sector workers and so save the Government money at the expense of people living outside the South-East.

“It shows she has failed to understand what levelling up is all about and why it is so necessary.

“You cannot level up if your number one ambition is to drive down pay in the regions. You cannot level up if your stated desire is to create a country in which the inequalities between places become even more deeply entrenched than they already are. You cannot level up if you deliberately intend to remove money from the regional economy.

“As mayor Ben Houchen said, it is a ‘horrifically bad’ plan.”

“If you are going to pay people more in the south east than they can get in the North East, the best nurses and teachers are going to be sucked out of the region.

“Coming so soon after her childish comments about Scotland – just ignore them, she said – this lack of judgement raises profound questions about her suitability to be Prime Minister. Just what can she be trusted with?”

Discussing the decision to scrap the policy, Ms Truss said: “I don’t want people to be concerned, so I’m being very clear, we will not be going ahead with the regional pay board… I’m being honest that there were concerns expressed.

“I believe my policy was being misinterpreted, I want to be clear with the public, that I will not be going ahead with the regional pay boards. I’m somebody who is honest and up front and I do what I say I will do and I’m being clear I will not be doing that.”