British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak&nbsp;has&nbsp;announced the scrapping of the northern leg of the HS2 train line — from West Midlands to Manchester.

<h2>Sunak's speech</h2>

"I'm ending this long-running saga. I am cancelling the rest of the HS2 project. And in its place we will reinvest every single penny - 36 billion pounds - in hundreds of new transport projects in the north and the midlands, across the country," said Sunak

Better value for money and a shorter project delivery time will reportedly be the reasons he will state for this move.&nbsp;

While the northern leg will be scrapped, work has started on the London to Birmingham leg of the HS2.

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Talking to BBC earlier, Defence Minister Grant Shapps had hinted the scrapping. He said: "We have to wait for his actual speech to hear exact confirmation."&nbsp;

Sunak's Conservative Party is badly lagging the opposition Labour Party in polls. An election is expected next year in UK.

<h2>Anger over scrapping</h2>

Prior to announcement, the possibility of scrapping of the HS2 train&nbsp;triggered a wave of anger among local leaders and businesses.&nbsp;Sunak's decision has not gone down well with his party colleagues and with members of the Opposition and it has caused anger.

Andy Burnham, the labour mayor of Greater Durham, has labelled the move disrespectful of "people across the whole of the North."

"It just proves there are so many people in politics - many in the Tory party - that think they can treat the north of England differently to the way they treat other parts of the country," he told BBC.

Andy Street, the Conservative West Midlands mayor, called a press conference on Monday (Oct 5th) where he "warned" Sunak that getting rid of the HS2 line was equivalent to "cancelling the future".

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Thirty businesses, including football club Manchester United, had&nbsp;written to Sunak, urging him to commit to the HS2 line, and&nbsp;dodge "economic self-sabotage".

The announcement put a full stop&nbsp;to&nbsp;weeks of speculation over the future of the HS2 line. The line in question was supposed to help cut down travel time, create more space on the rail network and boost jobs outside London. However, the latest estimates show that the cost to deliver the project may come to £71 billion ($85.8 billion). This is a significant increase from the 2019 prices, which failed to account for the spike in material and labour costs.&nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies)

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British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has announced the scrapping of the northern leg of the HS2 train line — from West Midlands to Manchester. Sunak's speech "I'm ending this long-running saga.

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has announced the scrapping of the northern leg of the HS2 train line — from West Midlands to Manchester. Sunak's speech "I'm ending this long-running saga. I am cancelling the rest of the HS2 project. And in its place we will reinvest every single penny - 36 billion pounds - in hundreds of new transport projects in the north and the midlands, across the country," said Sunak Better value for money and a shorter project delivery time will reportedly be the reasons he will state for this move. While the northern leg will be scrapped, work has started on the London to Birmingham leg of the HS2. Also read | Canada wants ‘private talks with India’: Foreign Minister Melanie Joly as row escalates Talking to BBC earlier, Defence Minister Grant Shapps had hinted the scrapping. He said: "We have to wait for his actual speech to hear exact confirmation." Sunak's Conservative Party is badly lagging the opposition Labour Party in polls. An election is expected next year in UK. Anger over scrapping Prior to announcement, the possibility of scrapping of the HS2 train triggered a wave of anger among local leaders and businesses. Sunak's decision has not gone down well with his party colleagues and with members of the Opposition and it has caused anger. Andy Burnham, the labour mayor of Greater Durham, has labelled the move disrespectful of "people across the whole of the North." "It just proves there are so many people in politics - many in the Tory party - that think they can treat the north of England differently to the way they treat other parts of the country," he told BBC. Andy Street, the Conservative West Midlands mayor, called a press conference on Monday (Oct 5th) where he "warned" Sunak that getting rid of the HS2 line was equivalent to "cancelling the future". Also read | NASA's Perseverance rover captures footage of Martian 'dust devil' Thirty businesses, including football club Manchester United, had written to Sunak, urging him to commit to the HS2 line, and dodge "economic self-sabotage". The announcement put a full stop to weeks of speculation over the future of the HS2 line. The line in question was supposed to help cut down travel time, create more space on the rail network and boost jobs outside London. However, the latest estimates show that the cost to deliver the project may come to £71 billion ($85.8 billion). This is a significant increase from the 2019 prices, which failed to account for the spike in material and labour costs. (With inputs from agencies) WATCH WION LIVE HERE You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here.

Rishi Sunak announces scrapping of HS2 train line to Manchester

Sunak is anticipated to make a statement soon regarding the heavily criticized HS2 high-speed train project. The prime minister wants to strengthen his position as a leader by demonstrating his willingness to make difficult choices now in order to benefit society later. The meeting will come to a close with Sunak's speech.

Tory annual conference to revive Sunak's ailing poll numbers?

The British government is in "preliminary discussions" with the part state-owned China Railway Construction Corporation (CRCC) to help build the controversial HS2 high-speed link, according to the Department of Transport.

"The DfT is always keen to learn from the experience of others and to consider approaches that offer value for money to the taxpayer," said a ministry official, confirming reports in Saturday's Financial Times.

The department added that no "concrete commitments" had been made.

London finally approved the new high-speed railway line on Tuesday, with full construction work to begin in April following years of delays, after Prime Minister Boris Johnson backed the project.

He said the entire HS2 line linking London to central and northern England would go ahead, rejecting criticism of a ballooning price tag and impact on the environment.

"If we start now, services could be running by the end of the decade. So today... the cabinet has given high-speed rail the green signal," he told the House of Commons.

The CCRC wrote to rail chiefs last month in a letter seen by Building Magazine saying it could construct the line five years earlier than scheduled for a much-reduced price.

"We are certain that we can offer a cost that is significantly lower than the projections we have seen," the magazine quoted the letter as saying.

"The advantages are too great, in our opinion, too great to dismiss on the basis that there are obstacles to overcome.

"You will find that the Chinese way is to seek solutions, not linger on obstacles and difficulties," it added.

An independent review into the scheme, currently the largest infrastructure project in Europe, estimated it could cost more than £100 billion ($129 billion, 118 billion euros).

But Johnson hopes HS2 would help rebalance the economy away from London and the south-east of England and reduce climate emissions by persuading car drivers to take the train.

Chinese involvement in a key infrastructure project would be hugely controversial, given the furore surrounding Britain's decision to allow telecoms giant Huawei into the country's 5G network.

The decision left the United States "disappointed" after it called for a total ban.

The British government is in "preliminary discussions" with the part state-owned China Railway Construction Corporation (CRCC) to help build the controversial HS2 high-speed link, according to the Department of Transport.

The British government is in "preliminary discussions" with the part state-owned China Railway Construction Corporation (CRCC) to help build the controversial HS2 high-speed link, according to the Department of Transport. "The DfT is always keen to learn from the experience of others and to consider approaches that offer value for money to the taxpayer," said a ministry official, confirming reports in Saturday's Financial Times. The department added that no "concrete commitments" had been made. London finally approved the new high-speed railway line on Tuesday, with full construction work to begin in April following years of delays, after Prime Minister Boris Johnson backed the project. He said the entire HS2 line linking London to central and northern England would go ahead, rejecting criticism of a ballooning price tag and impact on the environment. "If we start now, services could be running by the end of the decade. So today... the cabinet has given high-speed rail the green signal," he told the House of Commons. The CCRC wrote to rail chiefs last month in a letter seen by Building Magazine saying it could construct the line five years earlier than scheduled for a much-reduced price. "We are certain that we can offer a cost that is significantly lower than the projections we have seen," the magazine quoted the letter as saying. "The advantages are too great, in our opinion, too great to dismiss on the basis that there are obstacles to overcome. "You will find that the Chinese way is to seek solutions, not linger on obstacles and difficulties," it added. An independent review into the scheme, currently the largest infrastructure project in Europe, estimated it could cost more than £100 billion ($129 billion, 118 billion euros). But Johnson hopes HS2 would help rebalance the economy away from London and the south-east of England and reduce climate emissions by persuading car drivers to take the train. Chinese involvement in a key infrastructure project would be hugely controversial, given the furore surrounding Britain's decision to allow telecoms giant Huawei into the country's 5G network. The decision left the United States "disappointed" after it called for a total ban.

UK in talks with Chinese rail firm over high-speed line

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Rishi Sunak announces scrapping of HS2 train line to Manchester

Tory annual conference to revive Sunak's ailing poll numbers?

UK in talks with Chinese rail firm over high-speed line