Downing Street has refused to guarantee HS2 will run to Manchester as planned amid revelations Rishi Sunak and Jeremy Hunt are in talks about scrapping the project’s northern phase.
It comes after The Independent revealed ministers are considering shelving the second stage amid concerns about spiralling costs and delays.
The prime minister’s official spokesman told reporters in Westminster that “spades are already in the ground on our HS2 programme and we’re focused on delivering it” but that it would not promise the line would go to Manchester.
“I can’t comment on speculation around a leaked document. It is obviously standard process for departments to discuss the phasing of major projects like HS2… but the work is already under way,” he said.
Asked whether Mr Sunak was committed to the line going to Manchester, the spokesman said: “We are committed to HS2, to the project. I can’t comment on the speculation that’s a result of a photograph.
“We are as you know looking at the rephasing of the work in the best interests of passengers and taxpayers.”
Northern leaders on Thursday morning reacted with fury to the news, with Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham accusing ministers of “making the north pay for their failure”.
The high-speed railway, which is currently under construction between London and Birmingham, has already had its leg to Leeds cut and faces uncertainty about its approach into central London.
The discussions between Mr Sunak and Mr Hunt are thought to be in preparation for the chancellor’s next budget.
Government sources pointed to comments by Treasury minister John Glen in the Commons last week where he said the government remains “fully committed to delivering HS2 and the integrated rail plan”.
He added at the time: “This is a long-term investment that will bring our biggest cities closer to each other. It will boost productivity, and will provide a low-carbon alternative to cars and planes for many decades to come.”
Reacting the The Independent‘s revelation on Thursday morning Greater Manchester mayor Mr Burnham said ministers saw northern passengers as “second-class citizens” and derided repeated Tory promises to invest in the region.
“It’s coming up 10 years since [George] Osborne’s ‘Northern Powerhouse’ speech and the Tories are set to scrap the last of his rail pledges,” he said.
“The result? The southern half of England gets a modern rail system and the North left with Victorian infrastructure. Levelling up? My a**e.”
He added: “Government is guilty of gross mismanagement of HS2 and of making the North pay for their failure. Once again, passengers here are seen as second-class citizens.
“It’s time for an honest conversation about what they WILL do for the North and let voters decide if it’s enough.”
“The North-South divide is no accident. It’s national policy. It’s only by waking up to that fact that we can begin to understand the level of change Westminster, Whitehall and our entire political system needs.”
HS2 is expected to slash north-south intercity journey times and also release vast amounts of capacity for local train services on existing lines.
The project is currently set to be completed in stages from 2029 onwards, though it was originally due to open in 2026.
Henri Murison, chief executive of the Northern Powerhouse Partnership, a group representing businesses in the north of England, said any decision to curtail the project any further “would do serious damage to the government’s relationship with the business community” in the north and further afield.
“Cancelling Phase 2b would also make it impossible to improve east-west connectivity across the North as promised in the Integrated Rail plan. It would remove the most critical remaining section of Northern Powerhouse Rail between Manchester Piccadilly and Manchester Airport which is vital for getting passengers from Liverpool across the Pennines,” he said.
