We won’t scrap HS2 to the North, claims transport minister
TRANSPORT Minister Andrew Jones has been forced to deny reports that the Government is considering scrapping the HS2 line north of Birmingham.
He told a conference in Sheffield that reports HS2 will not get to the North are “nonsense”.
But an investigation by Channel 4 this week reported that the predicted cost of HS2 has now reached £60 billion, and said some Government Ministers wanted to scrap it.
HS2 is due to run between London, Birmingham, Manchester and Leeds, with trains switching to the East Coast Main Line in Yorkshire and running at conventional speeds to Newcastle.
Channel 4’s Dispatches reported that ministers have secretly allocated £6 billion a year to build the line over the next ten years. This is the same amount Network Rail spends per year on maintaining and upgrading the entire rail network.
The same cabinet source said ministers were considering saving costs by only building HS2 to Birmingham, and are “actively considering ” axing the entire HS2 scheme.
Greater
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Mayor Andy Burnham also backed HS2, when he commented in response to the Dispatches programme.
He said: “Be wary of this HS2 debate. They’re trying to make us choose between good North-South or East-West links. The truth is the North needs both.”
But Alastair Darling, who was Chancellor when the first government study into HS2 was launched ten years ago, told Dispatches he now believes the project should be scrapped.
The Labour politician said: “If you really want to do something to expand the economies of the Midlands and the North of England you should ask yourself what transport links do they need. If I was standing on a platform somewhere in Greater Manchester at the moment, I’d be more bothered that my train hasn’t turned up than about a high-speed link which is not going to get to me for some considerable time, if ever.”
Mr Jones, who is responsible for rail, said: “In case you have seen any recent newspaper stories claiming that the northern stages of HS2 might not be built – they are complete nonsense.
“HS2 was conceived, developed and is now being delivered as a national railway – but in particular to improve links for the North and Midlands.”