Why would you cloud the issue by mentioning stuff that nobody has even heard of? Apologising for not introducing something nobody was asking about?
It was quite clear there were big issues to deal with first, and once everything was in place, ALL new trains, ALL refurbishments, ALL pacers withdrawn, etc then that would be when they’d start talking about Northern Connect. It was obviously dependant on all that having happened.
Also as others have said, it was quite clear that the franchise got out of control. Pretty much everything went wrong - New trains delayed, PRM deadlines missed, Pacer withdrawal missed, timetabling, reliability, infrastructure, the RMT strike, the west side Sunday working, increased pressure to fix all that stuff now with very little means to do so, the list goes on, so it’s no wonder little things like the interface on the ticket machines were not fixed.