Transport Secretary Mark Harper ‘looking at options’ on HS2 rail link ahead of expected spending cuts

Published

3 years ago

November 3, 2022

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The new transport secretary has said the government is “looking at all of the options” over HS2 ahead of expected spending cuts.

Mark Harper would not commit to the plan for building the high speed rail project in full, saying “no decision has been made” on the Leeds to Manchester link.

HS2, along with Northern Powerhouse Rail (NPR), is a multi-billion pound project intended to create fast rail links between London and major cities in the Midlands and North of England.

Phase one will open between 2029 and 2033 and run from London to Birmingham over 134 miles.

However, phase two – which runs from Birmingham to Manchester via Crewe and had originally carried on to Leeds – has been shrouded in confusion after former prime minister Boris Johnson scrapped plans for a high speed link connecting Manchester and Leeds via Bradford – a decision his successor Liz Truss, while she was briefly prime minister, said she would reverse.

Asked if he will be “upholding what Liz Truss promised”, Mr Harper told Sky News the government “remains committed to delivering high speed two on time and within budget”.

But, pressed specifically on the line between Manchester and Leeds with a stop in Bradford, he said: “I think it’s fair to say things that the former prime minister (said), as Rishi Sunak made clear when he became prime minister, that for all the best motives, a number of mistakes were made.

“And he was elected as prime minister in part to fix them.”

Mr Harper acknowledged the Conservatives have made a manifesto commitment to get high speed trains to Leeds.

He said the government will be looking at “all the options” in light of decisions being taken in the autumn statement – when spending cuts and tax rises are expected as part of a plan to plug the UK’s £40bn black hole.

“And then we’ll be setting our plans in due course,” he said.

Calls for the full implementation of HS2 are loudest within the Tory red wall MPs who see it as a way to solidify their standing in northern seats.

But there are complaints from the more fiscally hawkish wings of the Conservative Party as they see it as a waste of money swaddled in bureaucracy and delays.

The project has been beset by delays and rising costs with some estimates putting the total price tag at more than £100bn.

Before Ms Truss’s intervention over the Northern Powerhouse Rail link, the government said as part of its Integrated Rail Plan it wanted to build 40 miles of newbuild high speed line between Warrington, Manchester and Yorkshire (to the east of Standedge tunnels); upgrade and electrify conventional line for the rest of the route between Liverpool and York; and significantly improve the previous Transpennine Route between Manchester and Leeds, with electrification of the whole route.

But this was rolling back on the original plan which was to build a full, high speed rail line from Liverpool to Leeds via Manchester, with links to other cities in the North and Midlands.

On Sunday, Levelling Up Secretary Michael Gove said investment in HS2 could be cut as a result of “mistakes” made by Liz Truss.

The UK is facing an economic crisis, with experts warning of an “unpalatable menu” of options to re-balance the nation’s finances after the fall-out from the previous administration’s disastrous mini-budget.

Any decision to cut spending on the project will likely be met with a backlash from northern leaders, who have previously accused the government of “betraying the north” after the plans were first watered down.

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Trump’s USAID cuts could lead to 14 million deaths, report warns

Published

1 hour ago

July 1, 2025

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Trump's USAID cuts could lead to 14 million deaths, report warns

Around 14 million people could die across the world over the next five years because of cuts to the US Agency for International Development (USAID), researchers have warned.

Children under five are expected to make up around a third (4.5 million) of the mortalities, according to a study published in The Lancet medical journal.

Estimates showed that “unless the abrupt funding cuts announced and implemented in the first half of 2025 are reversed, a staggering number of avoidable deaths could occur by 2030”.

“Beyond causing millions of avoidable deaths – particularly among the most vulnerable – these cuts risk reversing decades of progress in health and socioeconomic development in LMICs [low and middle-income countries],” the report said.

USAID programmes have prevented the deaths of more than 91 million people, around a third of them among children, the study suggests.

The agency’s work has been linked to a 65% fall in deaths from HIV/AIDS, or 25.5 million people.

Eight million deaths from malaria, more than half the total, around 11 million from diarrheal diseases and nearly five million from tuberculosis (TB), have also been prevented.

USAID has been vital in improving global health, “especially in LMICs, particularly African nations,” according to the report.

Established in 1961, the agency was tasked with providing humanitarian assistance and helping economic growth in developing countries, especially those deemed strategic to Washington.

But the Trump administration has made little secret of its antipathy towards the agency, which became an early victim of cuts carried out by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) – formerly led by Elon Musk – in what the US government said was part of a broader plan to remove wasteful spending.

In March, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said more than 80% of USAID schemes had been closed following a six-week review, leaving around 1,000 active.

The US is the world’s largest humanitarian aid donor, providing around $61bn (£44bn) in foreign assistance last year, according to government data, or at least 38% of the total, and USAID is the world’s leading donor for humanitarian and development aid, the report said.

Between 2017 and 2020, the agency responded to more than 240 natural disasters and crises worldwide – and in 2016 it sent food assistance to more than 53 million people across 47 countries.

The study assessed all-age and all-cause mortality rates in 133 countries and territories, including all those classified as low and middle-income, supported by USAID from 2001 to 2021.

World

Thai PM Paetongtarn Shinawatra suspended amid outrage over leaked phone call

Published

4 hours ago

July 1, 2025

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Thai PM Paetongtarn Shinawatra suspended amid outrage over leaked phone call

Thailand’s prime minister has been suspended after a leaked phone call with a senior Cambodian politician caused outrage.

An ethics investigation into Paetongtarn Shinawatra is under way and she could end up being dismissed.

The country’s constitutional court took up a petition from 36 senators, who claimed dishonesty and a breach of ethical standards, and voted 7 to 2 to suspend her.

The prime minister’s call with Cambodia’s former leader, Hun Sen, sparked public protests after she tried to appease him and criticised a Thai army commander – a taboo move in a country where the military is extremely influential.

Ms Shinawatra was trying to defuse mounting tensions at the border – which in May resulted in the death of one Cambodian soldier.

Thousands of conservative, nationalist protesters held a demo in Bangkok on Saturday to urge her to step down.

Her party is clinging on to power after another group withdrew from their alliance a few weeks ago over the phone call. Calls for a no-confidence vote are likely.

Deputy prime minister Suriya Juangroongruangkit will take over temporarily while the court looks into the case.

The 38-year-old prime minister – Thailand‘s youngest ever leader – has 15 days to respond to the probe. She has apologised and said her approach in the call was a negotiating tactic.

The popularity of her government has slumped recently, with an opinion poll showing an approval rating of 9.2%, down from 30.9% in March.

Ms Shinawatra comes from a wealthy dynasty synonymous with Thai politics.

Her father Thaksin Shinawatra – a former Manchester City owner – and aunt Yingluck Shinawatra served as prime minister before her – in the early to mid 2000s – and their time in office also ended ignominiously amid corruption charges and military coups.

World

Benjamin Netanyahu to meet Donald Trump next week amid calls for Gaza ceasefire

Published

10 hours ago

July 1, 2025

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Benjamin Netanyahu to meet Donald Trump next week amid calls for Gaza ceasefire

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will be meeting Donald Trump next Monday, according to US officials.

The visit on 7 July comes after Mr Trump suggested it was possible a ceasefire in Gaza could be reached within a week.

On Sunday, he wrote on social media: “MAKE THE DEAL IN GAZA. GET THE HOSTAGES BACK!!!”

At least 60 people killed across Gaza on Monday, in what turned out to be some of the heaviest attacks in weeks.

According to the Hamas-run health ministry, 56,500 people have been killed in the 20-month war.

The visit by Mr Netanyahu to Washington has not been formally announced and the officials who said it would be going ahead spoke on condition of anonymity.

An Israeli official in Washington also confirmed the meeting next Monday.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said the administration was in constant communication with the Israeli government.

She said Mr Trump viewed ending the war in Gaza and returning remaining hostages held by Hamas as a top priority.

The war in Gaza broke out in retaliation for Hamas’ 7 October 2023 attacks on southern Israel that killed 1,200 people and saw a further 250 taken hostage.

An eight-week ceasefire was reached in the final days of Joe Biden’s US presidency, but Israel resumed the war in March after trying to get Hamas to accept new terms on next steps.

Talks between Israel and Hamas have stalled over whether the war should end as part of any ceasefire.