HS2: 10-mile long tunnel under Chiltern Hills completed almost three years after setting off
The machine digging HS2’s longest tunnel has completed its 10-mile journey under the Chiltern Hills, almost three years after it started.
Dubbed Florence – after the nurse Florence Nightingale – the machine was greeted with fireworks and cheers from hundreds of HS2 workers on Tuesday.
Florence was launched in May 2021 near Rickmansworth, Hertfordshire, and set off on a 10-mile journey underground before emerging in South Heath, Buckinghamshire.
Pic: PA
Pic: PA
It finished one of a pair of tunnels – at a depth of up to 80 metres – that will be used for HS2 trains travelling between London and Birmingham.
HS2 explained: What is the route now?
The second tunnel is set to be finished within the coming weeks.
Pic: PA
Pic: PA
Described as an “underground factory” by HS2 Ltd, Florence ran with a crew of around 17 people working in shifts to keep it running constantly.
During its journey, the machine excavated the tunnel, lined it with 56,000 pre-cast concrete segments and grouted them into position, moving at an average speed of 16 metres per day.
After completing its mission, the machine will now be dismantled over the coming weeks.
Some large parts will be reused in other tunnel boring machines, but much of the machine – with a diameter of 10.25 metres – will be scrapped.
Pic: PA
Pic: PA
Rail minister Huw Merriman said after the tunnel was completed: “This ground-breaking moment for HS2 demonstrates significant progress on the country’s largest infrastructure project, with Florence paving the way for faster, greener journeys between London and Birmingham while supporting hundreds of jobs and apprenticeships along the way.
“Today’s breakthrough of HS2’s longest tunnel highlights the momentum behind the project and the achievement is testament to the hard work and dedication of the 450-strong team helping deliver the line that will transform rail travel for generations to come.”
A tunnel boring machine’s front shield being mounted near Old Oak Common, on 10 October 2023. File pic: PA
Preparations for the launch of two more machines to excavate tunnels between Old Oak Common and Euston in the capital is also under way.
Four similar machines are being used for tunnels on the approach to London, while another two will work on Birmingham’s Bromford tunnel.
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The three million cubic metres of chalk and other material removed by Florence will be used for a grassland restoration project in Rickmansworth.
Construction for HS2 at Curzon Street, Birmingham, on 4 November 2023. File pic: PA
Construction work on the HS2 line in Water Orton near Birmingham, on 15 February 2024. File pic: PA
In January, HS2 Ltd executive chairman Sir Jon Thompson said the cost of building HS2 between London and Birmingham could reach nearly £67bn – almost double an early projection for the entire original project.
Now only reaching Birmingham after Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced the northern leg of the project would be scrapped in 2023, the new estimate is nearly double what the high-speed network was expected to cost in 2013, when it had a price tag of £37.5bn.
The Public Accounts Committee also warned this month that the new plan to build HS2 between London and Birmingham but not extend it to Manchester will be “very poor value for money“.
Millionaire Tory donor Malcolm Offord has defected to Reform UK, saying he would be campaigning “tirelessly” to “remove this rotten SNP government”.
Nigel Farage announced the former Conservative life peer’s defection during a rally in the Scottish town of Falkirk, where regular anti-immigration protests have taken place outside the Cladhan Hotel – which is being used to house asylum seekers.
Mr Farage, Reform UK’s leader, said he was “delighted” to welcome Greenock-born Lord Offord to Reform, describing his defection as “a brave and historic act”.
He added: “He will take Reform UK Scotland to a new level.”
During a speech, Lord Offord, who previously donated nearly £150,000 to the Tories, said he would be quitting the Conservative Party and giving up his place in the House of Lords as he prepares to campaign for a seat in Holyrood in May.
The 61-year-old said he wanted to restore Scotland to a “prosperous, happy, healthy country”.
“Scotland needs Reform and Reform is coming to Scotland,” he told the rally.
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“Today I can announce that I am resigning from the Conservative Party. Today I am joining Reform UK and today I announce my intention to stand for Reform in the Holyrood election in May next year.
“And that means that from today, for the next five months, day and night, I shall be campaigning with all of you tirelessly for two objectives.
“The first objective is to remove this rotten SNP government after 18 years, and the second is to present a positive vision for Scotland inside the UK, to restore Scotland to being a prosperous, proud, healthy and happy country.”
The latest defection comes as Mr Farage finds himself at the centre of allegations of racism dating back to his time in school.
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Claims made against Nigel Farage
Sky News reported on Saturday that a former schoolfriend of Mr Farage claimed he sang antisemitic songs to Jewish schoolmates – and had a “big issue with anyone called Patel”.
Jean-Pierre Lihou, 61, was initially friends with the Reform UK leader when he arrived at Dulwich College in the 1970s, at the time when Mr Farage is accused of saying antisemitic and other racist remarks by more than a dozen pupils.
Mr Farage has said he “never directly racially abused anybody” at Dulwich and said there is a “strong political element” to the allegations coming out 49 years later.
Reform’s deputy leader Richard Tice has called the ex-classmates “liars”.
A Reform UK spokesman accused Sky News of “scraping the barrel” and being “desperate to stop us winning the next election”.
The European Commission’s proposal to expand the powers of the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) is raising concerns about the centralization of the bloc’s licensing regime, despite signaling deeper institutional ambitions for its capital markets structure.
On Thursday, the Commission published a package proposing to “direct supervisory competences” for key pieces of market infrastructure, including crypto-asset service providers (CASPs), trading venues and central counterparties to ESMA, Cointelegraph reported.
Concerningly, the ESMA’s jurisdiction would extend to both the supervision and licensing of all European crypto and financial technology (fintech) firms, potentially leading to slower licensing regimes and hindering startup development, according to Faustine Fleuret, head of public affairs at decentralized lending protocol Morpho.
“I am even more concerned that the proposal makes ESMA responsible for both the authorisation and the supervision of CASPs, not only the supervision,” she told Cointelegraph.
The proposal still requires approval from the European Parliament and the Council, which are currently under negotiation.
If adopted, ESMA’s role in overseeing EU capital markets would more closely resemble the centralized framework of the US Securities and Exchange Commission, a concept first proposed by European Central Bank (ECB) President Christine Lagarde in 2023.
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EU plan to centralize licensing under ESMA creates crypto and fintech slowdown concerns
The proposal to “centralize” this oversight under a single regulatory body seeks to address the differences in national supervisory practices and uneven licensing regimes, but risks slowing down overall crypto industry development, Elisenda Fabrega, general counsel at Brickken asset tokenization platform, told Cointelegraph.
“Without adequate resources, this mandate may become unmanageable, leading to delays or overly cautious assessments that could disproportionately affect smaller or innovative firms.”
“Ultimately, the effectiveness of this reform will depend less on its legal form and more on its institutional execution,” including ESMA’s operational capacity, independence and cooperation “channels” with member states, she said.
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The broader package aims to boost wealth creation for EU citizens by making the bloc’s capital markets more competitive with those of the US.
The US stock market is worth approximately $62 trillion, or 48% of the global equity market, while the EU stock market’s cumulative value sits around $11 trillion, representing 9% of the global share, according to data from Visual Capitalist.
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