HS2 cash-saving projects just ‘examples’, says transport minister

Projects outlined last Wednesday by the Government that would be brought forward by the cash saved from scrapping parts of the HS2 line were merely “examples” of what the money could be saved on, a minister said over the weekend.

The list, which has since been deleted from Government websites, included £36bn of cash to be invested across the North and Midlands after Prime Minister’s Rishi Sunak’s speech in Manchester outlined the scrapping of the HS2 line between Birmingham and Manchester.

The list contained some embarrassing oversights for the Government, included the suggestion of a new tram stop at Clifton south – which has been in operation for some eight years already.

Transport Secretary Mark Harper told the BBC’s Victoria Derbyshire on Sunday: “We gave some examples to people about the sorts of things – and we know these things are priorities locally – the sorts of things that that money could be spent on, and to bring it to life for people.”

Sunak’s speech has prompted widespread derision from leading business figures in the region. The East Midlands Chamber boss, Scott Knowles, described the decision to scrap the line between Birmingham and Nottingham as “embarrassing”.