Rishi Sunak scraps the HS2 line to Manchester

The Prime Minister put an end to weeks of speculation after he confirmed the high-speed train line connecting Birmingham to Manchester would be axed.

The Prime Minister told his party's conference, taking place in Manchester, the HS2 project's costs had "more than doubled.” As part of a drive to create a new northern network, he pledged to invest in a raft of other transport schemes.

"I am ending this long-running saga.

I am cancelling the rest of the HS2 project and in its place, we will reinvest every single penny, 36 billion, in hundreds of new transport projects in the North and the Midlands, across the country.

Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham slammed the abandonment of the Birmingham to Manchester line.

He said: “The idea that you can justify pulling the plug on rail infrastructure in the North of England by saying the world has completely changed and no one wants to go anywhere anymore, I’m sorry that’s a self-serving argument that just simply doesn’t stack up.” Report by Caponm.

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