أخبار العالم

Manchester United urge Rishi Sunak not to scrap HS2 | UK News


Man United and several northern businesses have urged the government not to scrap HS2 (Picture: Getty)

Manchester United and several northern businesses have written to Rishi Sunak urging him to not cancel the HS2 leg between Birmingham and Manchester.

More than 30 large and small organisations from Greater Manchester and the surrounding area have called on the Prime Minister to commit to building the high-speed railway in its entirety and avoid ‘economic self-sabotage’.

Several other notable organisations – including Manchester Airports Group (MAG), the University of Manchester and Co-operatives UK – signed a joint letter warning the Prime Minister he was risking the ‘prosperity’ of the North.

Mr Sunak repeatedly ducked questions about HS2 at the Conservative Party conference, held in Manchester, on Tuesday – amid widespread expectation he will cancel aspects of it due to spiralling costs.

Construction works for the Colne Valley Viaduct for the HS2 high-speed rail link are pictured on 26th September 2023 in London, United Kingdom. Speculation is growing as to whether the UK government intends to proceed with two key sections of HS2 between Birmingham and Manchester in the north of England and between Old Oak Common and Euston in the south. (photo by Mark Kerrison/In Pictures via Getty Images)

The organisations have warned the PM that scrapping the project threatens the ‘prosperity’ of the North (Picture: Getty)

The letter said: ‘In deciding on the future of HS2 you hold the future prosperity of the North and Midlands in your hands.

‘As businesses with a deep interest in the long-term future of Manchester and the UK as a whole we urge you not to cancel HS2.

‘It would be a major act of economic self-sabotage and damage our international standing as a place to do business.’

It said the businesses would be open to working with the Government to try and combat the project’s spiralling costs, but stressed HS2 was ‘fundamental to the economic future of the whole of the country’.

The letter concluded: ‘This is a once in a lifetime opportunity which we cannot afford to throw away. Scrapping this scale of infrastructure investment would risk our standing as a globally competitive UK in the future, and adversely impact our communities for decades to come.’

Ken O’Toole, MAG chief executive, said Mr Sunak would be wrong to ‘abandon the commitments the Government has made to deliver HS2’, adding the North needs ‘better connectivity’.

Mr O’Toole said the North’s growth and productivity had ‘been stifled by outdated rail infrastructure” over the past decade.

LONDON, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 03: A train to Sheffield runs past as construction continues on the Old Oak Common HS2 site on October 03, 2023 in London, England. Speculation about the fate of the HS2 high-speed rail project reached a fever pitch this week amid rumours that the government would shelve the Birmingham-to-Manchester leg and also could announce that the line will no longer end at Euston, at least initially, instead terminating at Old Oak Common. The new station here is scheduled to be completed around the end of the decade. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

Local business leader have argued that the North ‘needs better connectivity’ (Picture: Getty)

In a statement, he added: ‘The UK needs a bold and ambitious plan for unlocking the potential of the North and rebalancing the national economy.

‘That plan should integrate a modern rail network with the global connectivity provided by Manchester Airport.

‘We call on Government to work with business and political leaders to ensure that vision is delivered.’

On Monday, Tory mayor for the West Midlands, Andy Street, said scrapping the scheme while holding a conference in Manchester would be ‘an incredible political gaffe’.

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

For more stories like this, check our news page.



مقالات ذات صلة

اترك تعليقاً

لن يتم نشر عنوان بريدك الإلكتروني. الحقول الإلزامية مشار إليها بـ *

زر الذهاب إلى الأعلى