Don’t let China build HS2, warns senior Tory MP

A SENIOR Tory MP has warned the Government against allowing China to build the HS2 rail line – because ‘the cost to our sovereignty could be higher than we ever imagined’.

Tom Tugendhat, chairman of the Commons Foreign Affairs Committee, spoke out after the Department for Transport confirmed that HS2 Ltd was in talks with the China Railway Construction Corporation (CRCC).

Boris Johnson gave the go-ahead for HS2 last week, despite some estimates putting the final cost at more than £100 billion.

But CRCC has claimed that it could finish the line by 2025 – 15 years ahead of schedule – for a significantly reduced price tag.

Mr Tugendhat, who has also spoken out against using Chinese firm Huawei to help build Britain’s 5G network, said: ‘We are being offered, at extraordinarily generous terms it appears, everything to connect our telephone networks, to connect our cities and to connect our power networks.

‘Have we decided to take back control from Brussels just to hand it over to Beijing? The idea we should allow others to act like we did in places like India and Nigeria for the best part of 200 years, here in the UK, would be questionable.’

CRCC, which has built most of China’s 15,500-mile high-speed network, said in a letter to HS2 Ltd: ‘We are certain that we can offer a cost that is significantly lower than the projections we have seen.

‘The advantages are, in our opinion, too great to dismiss on the basis that there are obstacles to overcome. You will find that the Chinese way is to seek solutions, not linger on obstacles and difficulties.’

Last month, Mr Tugendhat used an article in The Mail on Sunday to call on the Government to block Huawei from the UK’s 5G network.

A spokesman for Stop HS2, said: ‘The idea that the Chinese might be involved should fill everyone with dread, as their high-speed network has been beset with severe safety issues and corruption.’