Rishi Sunak has refused to deny he is scrapping the Birmingham to Manchester HS2 leg
Rishi Sunak laughed after he was grilled by Susanna Reid about 'letting down the people of Manchester' amid reports he is planning to axe the northern HS2 leg. The government is reportedly set to scrap the Birmingham to Manchester leg of the rail project in the coming days.
The Prime Minister is set to hold a Cabinet meeting in Manchester - during the Tory party conference - before reports suggest he will scrap the project. Follow live updates from the latest on HS2 here. The reports have been met with fury by politicians across Greater Manchester and the North. Andy Burnham, Mayor for Greater Manchester, called the plans 'wrong on so many levels'. READ MORE: Whatever happens with HS2 the Tories have insulted Greater Manchester again - it all feels very familiarIn media rounds this morning, Mr Sunak insisted he would not make a 'premature decision' on HS2 but refused to deny he was going to axe the northern leg. And on Good Morning Britain, Susanna Reid took the Prime Minister to task over the HS2 plans, the Mirror reports. In her final question to him about HS2, Susanna suggested he was letting down the people of Manchester with plans to axe the scheme. The Prime Minister laughed and looked awkward before adding: "That's not – we're having a good conference here in Manchester and what we just announced actually at this conference is a billion pounds for 55 towns across the country in the midlands and the north." Susanna doubled down on her question, asking 'are you cancelling HS2?' as Rishi continued to speak over her and insist their plans to invest money into towns across the country would help local people the most. She repeated her question, but he refused to comment on the speculation. When Susanna asked if that meant he wasn't cancelling, he just insisted he wouldn't be commenting on the speculation. "They're straight talkers up here in Manchester," Susanna warned him, "They want an answer." Instead of answering her question, he continued to speak about net zero, which is his current policy he's trying to push. Susanna asked him when he'd be making a decision, to which he replied: "When we've gone through it properly. That's how I approach things. You saw that on net zero, I want to save people money. We can still meet all our targets ... It's about decision making, and I'm glad you asked actually. What I don't want to do is saddle people with 5, 10, 15 thousands in extra costs. "I'm absolutely committed to levelling up and our announcement as I said this week at conference. Most people watching this show probably live in towns and not cities and don't get the attention they deserve from Westminster." Susanna concluded her chat by simply telling the Prime Minister that "we'll let them judge" as she rounded up their interview.
United Kingdom Latest News, United Kingdom Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
The ghosts of politics past deliver their verdict on Rishi Sunak's governmentSOMEWHERE in political heaven, the ghosts of former British politicians have gathered to discuss the Tory Party conference. In the chair is
Read more »
Fury as news breaks that Rishi Sunak is set to axe the Manchester leg of HS2Andy Burnham has led a tirade of anger at reports that the PM has decided it's the end of the line for the northern leg of the high-speed railway
Read more »
GMB viewers brand Susanna Reid an 'absolute icon' after Rishi Sunak grillingThe PM squirmed after being confronted about HS2 and the NHS.
Read more »
LIVE: HS2 updates as Rishi Sunak speaks after 'deciding to scrap Manchester leg'The Prime Minister has reportedly decided to scrap the Birmingham to Manchester leg
Read more »