West Midlands and Greater Manchester mayors outline options to revive rail after axing of northern leg of HS2
Two of England’s mayors have outlined their proposals to revive rail in the Midlands and North post-HS2, insisting they “won’t accept a do-nothing scenario”.
Greater Manchester’s mayor, Andy Burnham, and his West Midlands counterpart, Andy Street, teamed up after the government axed the northern leg of the high speed rail project last year, and are trying to find an alternative to improve services between the cities with the help of the private sector.
Now the pair have offered up three options – from smaller upgrades through to a whole new line – they believe would provide “real benefits” to both their areas.
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Briefing journalists at an event in Birmingham, Mr Burnham said failing to increase capacity in the North West “would be damaging to economic growth in the regions and would mean the West Midlands and Greater Manchester would be set back”.
West Midlands mayor Andy Street (left) and Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham
He also said it would leave the UK “with quite a serious transport headache for the rest of this century”, with both the West Coast Main Line and the M6 already “at capacity”.
The mayor added: “Having been promised Northern Powerhouse Rail with HS2 at its heart… we won’t accept a do-nothing scenario.”
Mr Street outlined the alternatives on the table following the work they carried out with a private sector consortium – including engineers, construction firms and finance experts, led by former HS2 boss Sir David Higgins.
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The proposals are to either:
• Enhance the existing West Coast Main Line to “improve some of the most constrained parts” – though Mr Street warned it was the “minimal capital” option offering “minimum advantage”;
• Build major bypasses to the line at the southern end, as well as between Crewe and Stockport, alongside upgrades to the existing line;
• Construct a completely new and segregated line, but not built to the specification of the high-speed line in the south.
They could not commit to Sky News that there would be no need for public funding, but insisted it was “the less complicated part of the network” due to no need for tunnelling, and the transport benefits would be “huge”.
Mr Burnham also denied the ideas were “HS2 by the back door”, telling reporters they had “reluctantly” accepted the decision to scrap the second leg of the high speed project.
But Mr Street added: “We do believe there is a real benefit in one of those three or some blend between them,” added Mr Street.
The mayors shared a map of where their proposals would be focused – between Birmingham and Manchester.
Both mayors also praised the approach of Transport Secretary Mark Harper to their work, saying they held a “constructive” meeting with him last week and planned further talks in March.
The minister had previously suggested he was “open-minded” to any proposals, though he remained “somewhat sceptical” about whether HS2 could be completed without public investment.
Asked by Sky News about doubts in Westminster over their project, Mr Burnham said there were schemes “around the world” that had been largely privately funded, such as the expansion of the TGV in France, showing it can work.
“Those sceptical MPs really should look up some of what’s been done in other parts of the world where infrastructure have been delivered successfully in a less costly way than the original HS2 [line] and where the private sector has played a considerable role in taking the risk off the public sector,” he said.
“This is not unrealistic or pie in the sky. There are plenty of examples.”
West Midlands mayor Andy Street also praised the approach of Mr Harper, telling Sky News: “It would have been very easy for the government to double down on the difficult decision they took at the Conservative Party conference.
“They have not done that.”
He adds: “The transport secretary has said it. He says he is ‘open-minded’ and described the meeting last week as ‘constructive’, so they are definitely willing to examine the outputs of this.”
But despite all the work with the private sector, would the final plan still need taxpayer cash?
“Not necessarily,” said Mr Burnham. “But that’s what [our] work will be looking at.”
A group of US Senate Democrats known for supporting the crypto industry have said they would oppose a Republican-led stablecoin bill if it moves forward in its current form.
The move threatens to stall legislation that could establish the first US regulatory framework for stablecoins, according to a May 3 report from Politico.
Per the report, nine Senate Democrats said in a joint statement that the bill “still has numerous issues that must be addressed.” They warned they would not support a procedural vote to advance the legislation unless changes are made.
Among the signatories were Senators Ruben Gallego, Mark Warner, Lisa Blunt Rochester and Andy Kim — all of whom had previously backed the bill when it passed through the Senate Banking Committee in March.
The bill, introduced by Senator Bill Hagerty, is formally known as the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins (GENIUS) Act.
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The Senate is expected to begin floor consideration of the bill in the coming days, with the first vote potentially taking place next week.
The bill has been championed by the crypto industry as a landmark step toward regulatory clarity. However, the Democrats’ about-face reflects growing unease within the party.
Although revisions were made to the bill after its committee approval to address Democratic concerns, the lawmakers said the changes fell short. They called for stronger safeguards related to Anti-Money Laundering, national security, foreign issuers, and accountability measures for noncompliant actors.
The statement was also signed by Senators Raphael Warnock, Catherine Cortez Masto, Ben Ray Luján, John Hickenlooper and Adam Schiff.
Senator Kirsten Gillibrand and Senator Angela Alsobrooks were absent from the list, who co-sponsored the bill alongside Hagerty.
Despite their objections, the Democratic senators emphasized their commitment to shaping responsible crypto regulation. They reportedly said they “are eager to continue working with our colleagues to address these issues.”
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Crypto needs a stablecoin bill
On April 27, Caitlin Long, founder and CEO of Custodia Bank, criticized the US Federal Reserve for quietly maintaining a key anti-crypto policy that favors big-bank-issued stablecoins, despite relaxing crypto partnership rules for banks.
Long explained that while the Fed recently rescinded four prior crypto guidelines, a Jan. 27, 2023, statement was left intact in coordination with the Biden administration.
The guidance, according to Long, blocks banks from engaging directly with crypto assets and prohibits them from issuing stablecoins on permissionless blockchains.
However, Long noted that once a federal stablecoin bill becomes law, it could override the Fed’s stance. “Congress should hurry up,” she urged.
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Bitcoiners and United States government officials have criticized Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs’s decision to veto a bill that would have allowed the state to hold Bitcoin as part of its official reserves.
“This will age poorly,” Casa co-founder and cypherpunk Jameson Lopp said in a May 3 X post. Bitcoin (BTC) entrepreneur Anthony Pompliano said, “Imagine the ignorance of a politician to believe they can make investment decisions.”
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“If she can’t outperform Bitcoin, she must buy it,” Pompliano said. Crypto lawyer Andrew Gordon said, “We need more elected officials who understand that Bitcoin and crypto are the future.”
Wendy Rogers, who co-sponsored the bill with State Representative Jeff Weninger, also voiced her disappointment.
“Politicians don’t understand that Bitcoin doesn’t need Arizona. Arizona needs Bitcoin,” Rogers said.
On May 2, Hobbs vetoed the Arizona Strategic Bitcoin Reserve Act, which would have permitted Arizona to invest seized funds into Bitcoin and create a reserve managed by state officials. “Today, I vetoed Senate Bill 1025. The Arizona State Retirement System is one of the strongest in the nation because it makes sound and informed investments,” Hobbs said.
Rogers said she would refile the bill during her next session. Rogers also pointed out that Arizona’s state retirement system already holds stocks of Michael Saylor’s Strategy (MSTR).
“Which is basically a leveraged Bitcoin ETF. Arizona’s Strategic Bitcoin Reserve bill will be back. HODL,” Rogers said. The stock price of Strategy rose 32% in April, the most significant monthly gain since November 2024.
Related: US gov’t actions give clue about upcoming crypto regulation
However, well-known crypto skeptic Peter Schiff sided with Hobbs. “The government should not be making decisions to use public funds to speculate in cryptocurrencies,” Schiff said.
Arizona would have become the first US state to establish a Bitcoin Strategic Reserve if it had passed.
Arizona joins several other US states where similar efforts have failed. Similar proposals in Oklahoma, Montana, South Dakota and Wyoming have stalled or been withdrawn recently.
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