‘Great train robbery’: Eastern leg of HS2 scrapped as plans for Northern Powerhouse Rail downgraded
The eastern leg of HS2 has been scrapped and plans for Northern Powerhouse Rail have been downgraded, Grant Shapps has confirmed.
The transport secretary told MPs that a new £96bn Integrated Rail Plan for the north and the Midlands will instead deliver “faster” train journeys both earlier and cheaper than the original HS2 plans would have done.
But a senior Tory criticised the government for “selling perpetual sunlight” and delivering “moonlight” for people in the North of England.
Grant Shapps said work on the new Integrated Rail Plan will start ‘by Christmas’
Unveiling the new plan in the Commons, Mr Shapps confirmed that the eastern leg of HS2 will no longer go all the way to Leeds. It will instead stop in the East Midlands near Nottingham.
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Plans for HS2 were originally meant to connect London with the city centres of Birmingham, Manchester, and Leeds.
The transport secretary told MPs a new £96bn rail plan will instead deliver three high-speed lines – HS2 Crewe to Manchester, Birmingham to East Midlands Parkway, Warrington to Manchester – but not HS2 to Leeds or Northern Powerhouse Rail Leeds to Manchester.
Justifying the revised project, Mr Shapps said it “will bring benefits at least a decade or more earlier”, adding that under the original scheme, HS2 would not reach the North until the early 2040s.
“We will provide a journey time of 33 minutes from Leeds to Manchester, a significant, a very significant, improvement,” he told MPs, adding that the new plan “will provide a better service than the outdated plan for for HS2 a decade ago”.
But Conservative chairman of the Transport Select Committee Huw Merriman told the Commons the government’s new plan “compromises some fantastic projects that will slash journey times and better connect our great northern cities”.
Grant Shapps told MPs the government’s new Integrated Rail Plan ‘will provide a better service than the outdated plan for for HS2 a decade ago’
Fellow Tory MP Robbie Moore pointed out that Bradford – the seventh largest city in the UK – will still not have a mainline station under the new plans.
“I’m deeply disappointed by today’s announcement. The Bradford district has been completely short-changed,” the MP for Keighley said.
Conservative MP for Thirsk and Malton in Yorkshire, Kevin Hollinrake, added that the original HS2 project could have been a great economic boost for Bradford.
And Conservative former minister Sir Edward Leigh described HS2 as “a white elephant missing a leg”.
Meanwhile, Labour’s shadow transport secretary Jim McMahon described the government’s new plan as a “great train robbery”, adding that ministers have “betrayed” the north.
He accused Prime Minister Boris Johnson of breaking a promise to build the entirety of HS2 made “60 times” in the past few years, telling MPs: “We were promised a Northern Powerhouse, we were promised a Midlands Engine, to be levelled up. But what we have been given today is a great train robbery.”
Plans for HS2 were originally meant to connect London with the city centres of Birmingham, Manchester, and Leeds
Mr McMahon said most of the £96bn rail investment Mr Shapps confirmed is not “new money” and therefore amounts to “crumbs off the table”.
“He promised the North would not be forgotten. He hasn’t just forgotten us – he’s completely sold us out!”, the shadow transport secretary added.
And Labour former minister Hilary Benn accused ministers of leaving a “huge big hole in the middle” of the North of England.
But Mr Shapps said the new “landmark” Integrated Rail Plan is an “ambitious and unparalleled programme” to overhaul inter-city links across the North and the Midlands – and said work will start “by Christmas”.
“This new blueprint delivers three high-speed lines. First, that’s Crewe to Manchester Second, Birmingham to the East Midlands with HS2 trains continuing to central Nottingham and central Derby, Chesterfield and Sheffield on an upgraded mainline. And third, a brand new high-speed line from Warrington to Manchester and to the western border of Yorkshire – slashing journey times across the north,” the transport secretary told the Commons.
He also insisted that the new plans will “speed up the benefits for local areas”.
Mr Shapps added that it is “wrong” to say the government is just “electrifying the TransPennine route”.
“What we’re actually doing is investing £23 billion to deliver Northern Powerhouse rail and the TransPennine route upgrade, unlocking east-west travel across the north of England,” he told MPs.
“So, in total, this package is 110 miles of new high-speed line, all of it in the midlands and the north. It’s 180 miles of newly-electrified line, all of it in the midlands and the North.”
The government will “study how best to take HS2 trains into Leeds”, Mr Shapps said.
He also confirmed £360m to reform fares and ticketing with the rollout of contactless pay-as-you-go ticketing to 700 urban stations, “including 400 in the North”.
Northern political leaders had warned the government will pass up huge economic benefits and betray promises to voters if, as expected, it cancelled the eastern leg of HS2 and a new Manchester-Leeds line.
The Northern Powerhouse Partnership said the cuts, which will see upgrades on the existing trans-Pennine line, will save just £4bn, and short-change commuters and businesses.
“Watering down Northern Powerhouse Rail for the sake of only 10% of the overall original budget of £39bn is unforgivably short-sighted from the Treasury,” said director Henri Murison.
He added: “We won’t be hoodwinked into believing we’re getting £96bn for a transport revolution in the North.”
The cuts will raise questions about the prime minister’s oft-quoted “levelling up” agenda, designed to spread wealth beyond southeast England, leaving him vulnerable to a charge of breaking a promise to new Conservative voters in the North.
In a statement, the PM said: “If we are to see levelling up in action now, we must rapidly transform the services that matter to people most.
“That’s why the Integrated Rail Plan will be the biggest transport investment programme in a century, delivering meaningful transport connections for more passengers across the country, more quickly – with both high-speed journeys and better local services, it will ensure no town or city is left behind.”
The UK’s power grid operator has issued a call for electricity providers to bolster output this evening to avert the risk of blackouts.
The National Energy System Operator (NESO) issued an alert “to encourage market actions to increase system margins”.
It was the first such precautionary measure of the winter to date and issued at a time when much of the UK is shivering under sub-zero temperatures.
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The NESO is worried about a lack of spare capacity in the grid from 4pm until 7pm due to “system constraints”.
The body, which is in public control having been part of National Grid until last autumn, said in an update that it was seeking 1,200 megawatts (MW) of power as part of the so-called system margin notice.
Such notices are a call for a greater safety cushion between power demand and available supply.
The NESO was at pains to point out that it does not signal that blackouts are imminent or that there is not enough generation to meet current demand.
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There is strain on the system due to a lack of wind and bitterly cold temperatures, which stoke stronger demand for electricity and gas.
Lows of minus 16C, the coldest of the winter so far, are forecast for parts of the UK on Thursday.
A yellow warning for snow and ice has been issued for northern Scotland and Northern Ireland from noon on Wednesday until midnight on Thursday.
Sub-zero temperatures are expected across the country for the foreseeable future.
It is the first winter the UK has seen in living memory without coal power forming part of the domestic electricity generation mix.
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The number of such power stations held in reserve was gradually drawn down under efforts to reduce the country’s carbon footprint.
Ratcliffe-on-Soar power station shut down in September.
The UK has reciprocal arrangements with neighbouring countries to draw power via so-called interconnectors if and when required to help keep the lights on.
National Grid data showed that more than 50% of the UK’s power was being generated through natural gas.
Renewables accounted for just 16% while France and Norway were helping provide 10% of output, with nuclear and Biomass accounting for the bulk of the balance.
Piers Morgan, the broadcaster and journalist, is leaving Rupert Murdoch’s British empire to focus on expanding his Uncensored YouTube channel in the US and other international markets, underlining prominent media figures’ accelerating shift away from traditional outlets.
Sky News can exclusively reveal that Mr Morgan and News UK – publisher of The Sun and The Times and owner of Times radio – have agreed a deal that will see him taking ownership of the Uncensored media brand and its existing 3.6 million-strong YouTube subscriber base through his production company, Wake Up Productions.
He is understood to have struck a four-year revenue-sharing deal with News UK that will see the Murdoch-owned company receiving a slice of the advertising revenue generated by Piers Morgan Uncensored until 2029.
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Mr Morgan returned to News UK in January 2022 with a three-year deal that included writing regular columns for The Sun and New York Post, as well as presenting shows on the company’s now-folded television channel, Talk TV.
People close to the situation said a book deal with the Murdoch-owned publisher Harper Collins would still go ahead, with Mr Morgan expected to complete that project later this year.
He will also continue to write occasionally for News Corporation’s newspapers, according to one insider.
Mr Morgan’s future had been the subject of growing speculation following the expiry of his three-year contract with News UK at the end of 2024.
As part of his new arrangements, Mr Morgan has also signed a deal with Red Seat Ventures, a US-based agency which partners with prominent media figures and influencers to help them exploit commercial opportunities through sponsorship and other revenue streams.
Piers Morgan on TalkTV. Pic: PA
Among those Red Seat has worked with are Megyn Kelly, the American commentator, and Tucker Carlson, the former Fox News presenter.
Mr Morgan is also understood to have received expressions of interest in other commercial and broadcasting deals from American media groups, having been one of few Brits to present his own TV chatshow on a mainstream US network.
Fond of the phrase “One day you’re the cock of the walk, the next you’re the feather duster,” during various phases of his career, his latest deal reflects the shifting dynamics in media consumption.
Responding to an enquiry from Sky News on Wednesday morning, Mr Morgan said in a statement: “I have had a great time working back at News and am delighted that we will continue to be partners.
“Owning the brand allows my team and I the freedom to focus exclusively on building Uncensored into a standalone business, editorially and commercially, and in time, widening it from just me and my content.
“It’s clear from the recent US election that YouTube is an increasingly powerful and influential media platform, and Uncensored is one of the fastest-growing shows on it in the world.
“I’m very excited about the potential for Uncensored.”
Mr Morgan declined to comment on any other aspect of his new arrangement with News UK or his expansion plans ahead of an official announcement, which is understood to be scheduled for later on Wednesday.
His decision to strike out on his own – albeit with a continued relationship with News UK – is said to reflect his belief that broadcast audiences will increasingly shift away from mainstream channels to platforms such as YouTube.
“He thinks YouTube will be a dominant broadcasting platform in terms of audience share within a couple of years,” said one.
It was unclear what the precise revenue split would be between Wake Up Productions and News UK during their four-year partnership.
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He is expected to focus his efforts to expand Uncensored on US audiences initially, with a wider international plan to follow that.
On Tuesday, Mr Morgan posted on X that he believed an interview with Elon Musk, the Tesla founder who has sparked a firestorm in British politics in recent weeks, was “getting closer”.
Among the other interviewees on his YouTube show have been Donald Trump during his first presidency, the Ukrainian president Volodomyr Zelensky and Cristiano Ronaldo, the footballer.
Rolls-Royce Motor Cars says a record £300m investment at its West Sussex factory base will help expand production of bespoke and electric models.
The BMW-owned firm, like rivals in the luxury sphere, has enjoyed rising demand for personalised vehicles among its wealthy customer base.
The carmaker said recent orders to complement its base models included 18-carat gold sculptures, embroideries consisting of more than 869,500 stitches, wood veneers including 500 individually-shaped pieces and holographic paint finishes.
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The investment, Rolls-Royce said, would bolster facilities at Goodwood to cover such requests and also its Coachbuild programme – an invitation-only service where clients get to “craft an entirely original motor car.”
The company added that additional space would also be created to prepare Rolls-Royce for an all-battery electric future, with a new fully electric model due to be unveiled later this year.
Bespoke commissions for 2024 included ‘year of the dragon’ embroidery for one customer. Pic: R-R/Ciaran McCrickard/Mindworks
The £300m investment marked the largest cash injection in the company’s operations since the plant opened in 2003, Rolls said.
It made the announcement while revealing a fall in sales during 2024.
The company sold 5,712 cars in 2024, a drop of more than 5% versus the 6,032 vehicles sold over the previous 12 months.
It said the decline was in line with expectations as it switches over to new models. Four were introduced during 2024 including the Cullinan Series 2 and Ghost Series 2.
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North America was its largest market in 2024. The most popular model, it said, was the all-electric Spectre.
Goodwood employs 2,500 people and produces 28 cars daily, it added.
Recent workforce expansion has been a result of its high margin Bespoke and Coachbuild programmes but also the transition to electric technology.
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