British Prime Minister to cancel high-speed train project between Birmingham and Manchester

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is preparing to announce this Wednesday the cancellation of the high-speed train project between Birmingham and Manchester (northern England), given the escalation in cost since it was designed more than a decade ago, according to reports the BBC.

The head of Government is expected to use the closing speech of the Conservative Party congress in Manchester to explain the abandonment of a project that in recent years has been considered the cornerstone of the Government's plans to improve territorial cohesion between the north and the south of the country.

Sunak thus challenges the conservative leaders of the affected regions, who fear that the decision will take its toll on them in the next general elections, scheduled for next year, in which the Labor opposition is the clear favorite in the polls.

The cost, more than double the estimated

The branch between London and Birmingham of the high-speed train, known as HS2, will continue, while the route to Manchester will be made through the existing conventional tracks, according to the British public broadcaster.

HS2 was first planned in 2010 at a cost of £33bn (€38bn), but latest estimates put it at around £71bn (€81bn).

In his speech today, Sunak will explain that he hopes to reinvest around £36 billion (€41.4 billion) he will save by canceling the project in other train lines and roads in central and northern England.