Rishi Sunak’s high-profile announcement of projects to be apparently funded by killing the northern leg of HS2 is a gem of political cynicism. He has made the announcement twice before, on 4 October and 17 November last year. He seems to have forgotten.
Each time the sum appears to shrink and delivery grows ever more distant. October began with £36bn for a schoolboy wishlist of engines, trains, trams, buses, roundabouts and even potholes. In November, £8bn was announced, mostly for mended and improved roads. This week, the sum is just £4.7bn for transport projects in general, apparently outside big cities. Funding won’t start until April 2025 and won’t finish until 2032. Meanwhile, Sunak was totally silent on his transport white elephant. At the same time, he would spend £67bn on the single HS2 line from Birmingham to London. The comparison is obscene.
