HS2 reveals £2bn in costs linked to Sunak’s downgrade of line

An artist’s impression issued by HS2 of an early visualisation of its trains. Rishi Sunak axed the second leg of the HS2 project in October last year. Photograph: HS2/PA

HS2 has revealed more than £2bn in costs linked to Rishi Sunak’s decision to downgrade the high-speed rail line.

The UK’s largest infrastructure project revealed that it had written off £1.1bn in costs incurred during “phase two”, which was due to link Birmingham to Manchester until the government scrapped it last year.