London to Birmingham only: Is HS2 about to hit the buffers?

ODN

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is considering whether to scrap or delay the second phase of the HS2 high-speed railway which would link Birmingham with Manchester. Launched in 2009, HS2 was estimated to cost £37.5 billion, but that number has continued to climb, and some reports suggest the budget may now have surpassed £100 billion. The government says it is concerned at the rising costs during the UK’s current economic situation. As it stands, HS2 would run from Old Oak Common, in London's western suburbs, to Birmingham Curzon Street, when it begins operations between 2029 and 2033. Report by Jonesia. Like us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/itn and follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/itn

Transcript

00:00 journey times for passengers across the country will get shorter.

00:03 It was meant to speed up links between London, the North and the Midlands. Now, 14 years

00:08 on from its inception, the HS2 project may hit the buffers in Birmingham.

00:14 Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is considering whether to scrap or delay the leg of the new

00:18 high-speed railway, which would link Birmingham with Manchester. The mayor of Greater Manchester

00:24 has warned that scrapping HS2 would be a disaster for the North of England.

00:28 Oh God, it's honestly so frustrating. No one has spoken to us. We've seen all of these

00:33 reports in the newspapers. No meeting, no information, we're completely in the dark.

00:38 This is a decision that has epic implications for the North of England and not even to speak

00:44 to us about it, that doesn't feel right to me. But secondly, we've said, look, you really

00:48 must not scrap HS2. But we're open to a conversation. If we reprioritise things so that Northern

00:55 Powerhouse Rail is built first, the East West line, then I think there'll be a lot of support

00:59 for that in the North of England.

01:00 The Prime Minister has been urged by senior Tories not to scrap the line. But whilst he

01:05 remains tight-lipped on HS2, he says he remains committed to levelling up.

01:10 Not just in the North, but in the Midlands, in all other regions of our fantastic country

01:14 as well. And transport infrastructure is a key part of that. But not just big rail projects,

01:18 also local projects, improving local bus services, fixing potholes. All of these things make

01:23 a difference to people's day-to-day lives. And that's what the government is getting

01:27 on doing with record amounts of funding.

01:29 Launched in 2009, HS2 was estimated to cost £37.5 billion. But that number has continued

01:37 to climb. And some reports suggest the budget may now have surpassed £100 billion.

01:43 The government says it is concerned at the rising costs during the UK's current economic

01:48 situation. Labour, however, argues that that situation is a mess of the government's own

01:54 making.

01:55 A year ago, the Conservatives took a set of very irresponsible decisions with the public

01:59 finances. And that's why people are paying more on their mortgages every month as a consequence

02:04 of those cavalier, irresponsible approaches to public finances. Now, we would never be

02:10 irresponsible when it comes to public spending. So we need the government to tell us what

02:15 is the finances of this project, what is the future projections. They've got that information.

02:20 And of course, when they announce that decision, we can make our decision in response based

02:25 on the full facts.

02:27 To add insult to injury, HS2's London terminus will be at Old Oak Common in the western suburbs

02:33 when the line opens in the next decade, rather than the more central Euston station.

02:38 What it will mean is that all those businesses that have been destroyed, those homes that

02:46 have been demolished will have been for nothing. But also here's the irony. The journey time

02:51 from Birmingham New Street to Euston's about one hour 21. The journey time from Birmingham

02:57 Cousin Street to Old Oak Common then to Euston will take longer than it currently takes.

03:03 So if the government goes ahead and cancels the station at Euston, it will be a huge waste

03:07 of taxpayers' money. Businesses, communities and others will be let down.

03:13 A decision on the fate of high-speed rail in Manchester is expected in the coming days.

03:18 It's one that will divide opinion amongst Conservatives ahead of the party's annual

03:22 conference this weekend in, yep, Manchester.

03:26 [train whistle]

03:28 [BLANK_AUDIO]

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