Northern leg of HS2 to Manchester will be scrapped
The northern leg of the HS2 line is set to be scrapped, Sky News understands.
Rumours had been circling for weeks that the high-speed rail line between Birmingham and Manchester was going to be axed by the prime minister and chancellor due to soaring costs.
Even the reports – which have been denied by Number 10 – led to a huge backlash from all sides of the political spectrum, including from former Conservative prime ministers Boris Johnson and Theresa May.
A Downing Street spokesperson said: “These reports are incorrect. No final decisions have been taken on Phase 2 of HS2.”
The development threatens to attract controversy and overshadow Rishi Sunak’s first Tory conference as leader and prime minister as the party faithful gathers in Manchester for the annual event.
The first indications that the leg to Manchester could be scrapped came after The Independent reported that ministers were considering shelving the northern phase because of concerns about spiralling costs and severe delays.
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The newspaper said a cost estimate revealed that the government has already spent £2.3bn on stage two of the railway from Birmingham to Manchester, but that ditching the northern phase could save up to £34bn.
Sky News understands the Department of Transport (DfT) has worked up a package of alternative projects – rail, bus and road schemes – which could be funded from money saved by scrapping the Manchester to Birmingham leg of the project.
But Andy Burnham, the Labour mayor of Greater Manchester, accused the government of treating people in the north of England as “second-class citizens” with regards to HS2.
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‘Second-class citizens on transport’
He told Sky News’s Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips: “An east-west line is really important for north of England, as well as north-south. Why is it always that people here are forced to choose? That we can’t have everything, ‘you can have this or you can have that but you can’t have everything’?
“London never has to choose between a north-south line and an east-west line and good public transport within the city.
“Why is it that people in the north are always forced to choose, why are we always treated as second-class citizens when it comes to transport?”
Number 10 is trying to shut down an announcement it is not ready to make public
Ahead of today, Downing Street drew up a plan for announcing a decision on scrapping the northern leg of HS2 in Manchester.
It would involve a cabinet meeting here at conference, possibly a visit by the PM and the announcement itself.
Earlier today, I was told a decision had been made. This would have been at the heart of government’s inner sanctum, with this communicated only to a small number.
All the internal government documentation on HS2 is numbered to try and capture leakers, with press spokesman not in the loop.
It has also not yet gone to cabinet – we would know if this had happened.
Therefore Number 10 can legitimately say that no final decision has been made – as some decisions have, we are told.
This revelation – as the chancellor was due on stage – could not be more disruptive for conference, meaning HS2 is eclipsing yet another day of the coverage.
Number 10 are now trying to shut down an announcement they are evidently not ready to make in public.
That is why they have issued the following: “These reports are incorrect. No final decisions have been taken on Phase 2 of HS2.”
We await the next twist in the tale.
He was joined in his criticism by Mr Johnson, who said delaying or scrapping the northern leg of HS2 would be “betraying the north of the country and the whole agenda of levelling up”.
The ex-prime minister’s intervention came on on the eve of the party conference.
In a series of interviews on Thursday, Rishi Sunak repeatedly refused to be drawn on the future of HS2, saying: “I’m not speculating on future things.”
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But writing in his weekly Daily Mail column, Mr Johnson appealed to his former chancellor to show Britain still has “the requisite guts and ambition” to invest in infrastructure and labelled the aim of saving money “deluded”.
Mr Johnson – who made levelling up a centrepiece of his 2019 manifesto and government – said when he heard reports the northern leg was set to be delayed or cancelled, he let out a “long, low despairing groan”.
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He wrote: “Cancel HS2? Cut off the northern legs? We must be out of our minds.”
Andy Street, the Conservative mayor of the West Midlands, has also warned against any downscaling of HS2.
Asked about the reports by Sky News at the conference in Manchester, he said: “You must ask the PM – I’m confident he’ll do the right thing.”
Delivery of the high-speed railway has been a core pledge of the Conservative government, but it has been plagued by delays and ever-increasing costs.
The initial opening date of 2026 has fallen back to 2033, while cost estimates have spiralled from about £33bn in 2010 to £71bn in 2019 – excluding the final eastern leg from the West Midlands to the East Midlands.
It is not just the northern section of the project that has encountered trouble.There are also doubts about the future of Euston station in London and whether services will terminate there or at Old Oak Common in west London.
Montana’s House of Representatives voted 41-59 against a bill that could have seen the US state establish a Bitcoin reserve.
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Starmer says ‘US is right’ about UK and Europe needing to take more responsibility for defence
Sir Keir Starmer has said the United States “is right” about the UK and Europe needing to take more responsibility for defence and security.
The prime minister, speaking at the Scottish Labour conference in Glasgow on Sunday, said he is clear Britain “will take a leading responsibility” in protecting the continent.
“Instability in Europe always washes up on our shores,” he said.
“And this is a generational moment. I’ve been saying for some time that we Europeans – including the United Kingdom – have to do more for our defence and security. The US is right about that.”
He added “we can’t cling to the comforts of the past” as it is “time to take responsibility for our security”.
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Donald Trump sparked an emergency meeting of European leaders this week after he said European NATO members should spend more on defence, while the US should spend less.
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Sir Keir has said he will set out a path for the UK to spend 2.5% of GDP on defence, up from the current 2.3%, but has not indicated when that will be.
It is believed he may announce the details when he visits Mr Trump in Washington DC on Thursday, bringing forward the announcement that was expected in the spring when a defence spending review is published.
The prime minister reiterated the UK will “play our role” if required in Ukraine following a peace agreement after he earlier this week said the UK would send troops to be part of a peacekeeping force.
Sir Keir will meet Donald Trump in the White House on Thursday. Pic: AP
However, his comments caused a row with Germany and Italy who said it was premature to commit to boots on the ground, although France agreed with the UK.
Sir Keir said: “As we enter a new phase in this conflict, we must now deepen our solidarity even further.”
He added: “There can be no discussion about Ukraine without Ukraine.
“And the people of Ukraine must have long-term security.”
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This week has seen US officials meet their Russian counterparts in Saudi Arabia to discuss Ukraine – which has been met with indignation by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as none of his team were invited.
No Europeans were invited either, sparking concern the US is pandering to Vladimir Putin.
Sir Keir has promised Mr Zelenskyy he will make the case for safeguarding Ukraine’s sovereignty when he meets with Mr Trump, who has called the Ukrainian president a dictator.
Mr Trump also said Sir Keir and French President Emmanuel Macron, who will visit the White House too this week, “haven’t done anything” to end the war.
The prime minister has announced £200m for Grangemouth ahead of the closure of Scotland’s last oil refinery.
Sir Keir Starmer, speaking at the Scottish Labour conference on Sunday, said the cash would come from the National Wealth Fund for an “investment in Scotland’s industrial future”.
Grangemouth oil refinery, on the banks of the Firth of Forth, is set to cease operation this summer and transition into an import terminal, making 400 workers redundant.
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Sir Keir said: “We will grasp the opportunities at Grangemouth, work alongside partners to develop viable proposals, team up with business to get new industries off the ground and to attract private investors into the partnership we need.
“We will allocate £200m from the National Wealth Fund for investment in Grangemouth.”
The money comes on top of a £100m “growth plan” already in place for the area.
Scotland’s first minister, the SNP’s John Swinney, welcomed the announcement and said it is “important that the Scottish and UK governments work together on securing the future for the workforce”.
The plant will become an import terminal. Pic: Jane Barlow/PA
Sir Keir said the new investment will be a partnership with the private sector, and he is expecting three times the amount the government is putting in to come from private investors.
The prime minister said he believes the transition to clean energy is a “golden opportunity for Britain, especially for Scotland”, and is essential for national security as it “gets Putin’s boots off our throat”.
However, he said oil and gas are also “vital for our security” so will be “part of the future of Scotland for decades to come”.
As well as the investment in Grangemouth’s future, Sir Keir said every person made redundant will get 18 months full pay and a skills and training offer “backed up with up to £10m”.
Any business in Grangemouth that takes on those workers will get National Insurance relief, he also said.
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Petroineos, which owns Grangemouth, announced last September it was to close Grangemouth by this summer because it was unable to compete with sites in Asia, Africa and the Middle East.
The refinery is understood to have been losing about £395,000 a day when it made the announcement and was on course to lose about £153m this year.
The company said the decision would “safeguard fuel supply for Scotland” by converting the site into a terminal able to import petrol, diesel, aviation fuel and kerosene into Scotland.
However, it said that would only need a workforce of fewer than 100 employees.
Petroineos announced its intention to close the plant in November 2023 but union leaders had hoped it could remain open for longer to provide time for a green alternative to be established there.
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