Cliff Notes
- The government will announce a delay to the HS2 project, stating the London to Birmingham line will not be ready by 2033
- Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander will attribute cost increases of £37bn since 2012 to “Tory failures” and may allege possible fraud by subcontractors.
- The announcement will coincide with two reviews examining the project’s current status and future construction timelines.
Government to announce another delay to HS2
The government will announce another delay to the beleaguered HS2 project on Wednesday, saying the latest target is now impossible.
Sky News has been told that Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander will announce that the London to Birmingham line will no longer be ready to open by 2033.
It is not clear what the new target date will be.
Ms Alexander is expected to blame the Tories for a “litany of failure” that drove the costs up by £37bn since 2012, when the high-speed rail network was approved by the coalition government.
As first reported by The Telegraph, she is also expected to raise concerns that taxpayers may have been defrauded by subcontractors and pledge that “consequences will be felt”.
Ms Alexander’s announcement will come alongside the findings of two reviews into HS2, looking into what went wrong and how and when to construct the rest of it.
She will tell MPs: “Billions of pounds of taxpayers’ money has been wasted by constant scope changes, ineffective contracts and bad management.
“It’s an appalling mess. But it’s one we will sort out.”
HS2 was originally planned to cut journey times and improve connectivity between London and the Midlands and the North.
It was given the go-ahead in 2012 with the aim of operating by 2026, but has since been mired in setbacks and spiralling costs.
Sources
Government to announce another delay to HS2 – MSN
HS2 opening ‘to be delayed by two years’ after damning report ‘drives costs up by £37BILLION’ – Daily Mail