A “jewel” village has been ripped apart by scrapped plans for an HS2 line, locals claim, as it emerged that taxpayers were footing a seven-figure annual bill to guard properties left empty by the overall project.
Some 35 of the 50 homes in Whitmore Heath were bought on behalf of the government from residents wanting to sell amid plans for a huge tunnel beneath the hillside hamlet for the high-speed rail link from London to Manchester.
