A leaked memo given to the Labour Party claims that delays to HS2 announced last week by the Government could increase costs and lead to construction Companies going bust
Speaking in the House of Commons this afternoon shadow transport Secretary Louise Haigh said that trains could terminate on the outskirts of London until 2041 and that it could not be ruled out slashing high speed trains serving Stoke, Macclesfield and Stafford altogether.”
“Could there be anything more emblematic of this failing government, than a flagship levelling-up project that reaches neither the north or central London.” she told MP’s
Last week the Secretary of State for Transport announced that there would be a two year delay on the line north of Birmingham
The Government said that it would not comment on leaks.
Meanwhile The Chartered Institution of Civil Engineering Surveyors (CICES) has questioned the logic behind the government’s decision to delay the Birmingham to Crewe leg of the HS2 high-speed rail project.
The internationally renowned organisation, based in Sale, Greater Manchester, has raised concerns about the government’s short-term thinking after last week’s announcement of a two-year delay, and has urged the Chancellor to think again.
CICES says it will cause a major decline in confidence in the rail and infrastructure sectors, impact jobs and livelihoods and businesses in the Midlands, will make it difficult to attract talent and dissuade young people from taking up careers in infrastructure.
Simon Hamlyn, CEO at the Chartered Institution of Civil Engineering Surveyors (CICES), said: “The government talks about levelling-up but when it comes to the crunch it’s always the north which loses out. We need long-term thinking and investment now, not short-term decision making and delays which will have a long-term effect on jobs, livelihoods, businesses and young people’s careers.
“Saving money now on the northern part of HS2 makes no economic sense since costs will rise further down the line.
“We are hugely disappointed by the government’s decision and would urge an eleventh-hour rethink. The Chancellor still has time to reverse this decision when he stands up in the Commons to deliver Wednesday’s Budget statement.”
