Yesterday, the BBC claimed that the Transport Department is planning to announce a new rail plan on Thursday that will involve £96bn in funding for routes in the North and Midlands. But this will involve scrapping the original plans for an eastern branch of HS2 that would include Leeds.
Instead, two shorter high-speed routes created in part by upgrading existing lines will be developed. HS2 trains will still ultimately travel to Leeds, but on the older lines at reduced speeds.
Shadow transport secretary Jim McMahon said ministers were attempting to “quietly back out” of infrastructure schemes that they had “committed to dozens of times”.
Naz Shah, Labour MP for Bradford West, said: “This is Boris pulling the whole damn rug from under our feet and ripping up the floor behind him.”
The move from the Government may be an attempt to stymie the project’s spiralling budget, which jumped by £1.7bn in the last year alone.
This was partially blamed on the suspension...