Bungling civil servants face major probe over HS2 fiasco – as project delayed yet again and costs spiral out of control
BUNGLING civil servants could face a major investigation over the HS2 fiasco - as the project is delayed yet again and costs spiral out of control.
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander today confirmed there is 'no route' to hitting the 2033 target for trains to run between London and Birmingham.
2
2
And she revealed the Prime Minister has asked the Cabinet Secretary to consider whether mandarins and public bodies should face a formal probe for their role in the chaos.
A source close to Ms Alexander told The Sun: 'We will make sure this mess can never happen again.
'That's why the Prime Minister has asked the Cabinet Secretary to immediately look at the role of the Civil Service and the wider public sector in HS2 – including whether an investigation is needed.'
The high-speed line was originally due to open in 2026 and stretch to Manchester and Leeds - but only the London to Birmingham leg remains, and even that now faces delays of two years or more.
Ms Alexander did not confirm a new completion date or cost, which some suggest could exceed £100billion - far above the official £57billion estimate at 2019 prices.
She said she was 'drawing a line in the sand' after what she called a 'litany of failure' spanning 15 years, with billions wasted on ineffective contracts, repeated changes, and scrapped designs - including £250million blown on two rejected station plans for Euston.
Two reviews published yesterday laid bare the scale of the failure: one by new HS2 boss Mark Wild warned the current scope, schedule and budget were 'unsustainable', while another by infrastructure adviser James Stewart blasted weak oversight and inconsistent ministerial involvement.
Ms Alexander said the previous government had pressed ahead with construction contracts despite a 2020 review warning against it, and that a Sunak-era ministerial taskforce for Euston 'never even met.'
She promised a reset, with a new 10-Year Infrastructure Strategy, fresh governance boards, and the appointment of former TfL boss Mike Brown - who helped deliver Crossrail - as HS2 Ltd's new chair.
She told MPs it would take 'a number of months' to confirm a final schedule and budget.
But Reform UK leader Nigel Farage said the whole scheme should be scrapped, blasting: 'Let's scrap HS2, let's use the tens of billions of pounds we can save in the next decade to upgrade railway lines across the entirety of the United Kingdom to the benefit of many millions, and spend the rest on other national priorities.'
Ms Alexander hit back: 'We are not going to be a country that spends over £30 billion on rail infrastructure but then never sees a train running on it... "
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Guardian
26 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Notting Hill carnival in danger without ‘urgent funding', says leaked letter
The future of the Notting Hill carnival could be in jeopardy without 'urgent funding' from the government, according to a leaked letter from its organisers. The carnival's chair, Ian Comfort, has written to the culture secretary to request public money, the BBC reported on Wednesday. It follows a review of the festival in west London, which began in 1966, identifying 'critical public safety concerns' that needed additional funding to address, the letter said. Comfort wrote that the money was 'essential to safeguarding the future and public safety of this iconic event', but did not state a figure. The independent safety review, whose findings and recommendations have not been made public, was commissioned by the carnival's organisers and paid for at a cost of £100,000 by the Greater London Authority (GLA), Kensington and Chelsea council and Westminster city council. In the leaked letter to Lisa Nandy, Comfort also referred to a separate report published in April by the London Assembly. He said the research highlighted the increasing strain placed on the Metropolitan police during large-scale public events. 'Limited resourcing has restricted the police service's ability to respond to growing operational pressures,' Comfort said in the letter. He went on to say that increased investment in stewarding and crowd management was 'now essential to allow the police to focus on their primary role of crime prevention and public protection'. Comfort added that a failure to secure immediate additional funding 'risks compromising public safety and jeopardising the future of the carnival'. The carnival chair said that although the GLA and the two councils had provided 'substantial support' for stewarding during past festivals, they could no longer 'meet the growing operational requirements identified in the review'. Sign up to Headlines UK Get the day's headlines and highlights emailed direct to you every morning after newsletter promotion The Met police's assistant commissioner, Matt Twist, previously raised concerns of a 'mass casualty event' at the carnival due to crowd density. Giving evidence to the London Assembly police and crime committee last September, Twist said: 'While we acknowledge that crime often gets the headlines, the thing that worries me most is the crowd density and the potential for a mass casualty event.' The carnival, second only to Brazil's Rio Carnival in size, attracts about 2 million people over the August bank holiday weekend. This year's event is scheduled to take place on 24 and 25 August. The Met had about 7,000 officers on duty for last year's festivities, drawn from local policing teams and specialist units. The organisers of Notting Hill carnival have been contacted for comment.
BBC News
31 minutes ago
- BBC News
Park heads up St Mirren recruitment as Foyle departs
St Mirren have appointed John Park as head of recruitment and emerging talent after Martin Foyle left to join Carlisle was most recently head of recruitment at Blackburn Rovers and has also worked for clubs including Celtic, Rangers, Birmingham City, Maccabi Haifa and Vancouver Mirren CEO Keith Lasley said: "We are sorry to see Martin moving on and wish him the best of luck in his new challenge."His contributions have been key in the club's progression over the past few seasons and we thank him for all his efforts."We have, however, moved quickly to bring John to the club and we are excited to welcome him to St Mirren."John's experiences across the world, significantly in player trading and youth development, make him the ideal person to build upon the relative success at the club over the past few years in line with our club strategy."Manager Stephen Robinson says the exit of "close friend" Foyle is a "sad loss for the club".He added: "Martin has been an integral part of what we've done over the past three-and-a-half years and he's been an integral part of what I've done as a manager over 10 years now."The club have appointed John and it's important that we get working together quickly, build a relationship and I look forward to that."
Telegraph
33 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Should abortion have been decriminalised?
While women will no longer be prosecuted for aborting their pregnancies at any point up to birth, an exclusive Telegraph poll reveals that 95 per cent of more than 11,000 respondents are against this decision. MPs voted with a majority of 242 to decriminalise seeking an abortion at any stage of gestation for any reason, removing the threat of women being investigated or arrested for seeking termination. Telegraph readers' reasons against the amendment ranged from a belief that life begins at conception to concerns over late-term abortions and the contrast with ongoing restrictions on assisted dying. 'This law has legalised murder' In a world in which access to birth control is readily available and many who want to be parents are unable to have children, some readers feel strongly that abortion should not be a legal option at all. Giles Darling argues: 'Imagine how many people alive today could have been legally terminated if this abortion-up-until-birth policy had been the law in the past? A child with a congenital condition or an unwanted genetic trait could miss their chance to be an impactful future scientist or entrepreneur.' Rosemary Wells writes: 'A baby at full term or even six weeks before birth is capable of living outside the womb and is completely sentient. They're conscious and able to feel pain. This law has legalised murder. This is legalising the destruction of anyone who is inconvenient and unwanted.' Linda Richards, who says she never thought the amendment would be voted through, comments: 'If these women don't want the child, give it up for adoption.' Bernie Carolan, who wrote to his MP about the matter, says: 'I asked her to vote no, as medical professionals have publicly raised grave concerns about the procedures involved in late-term abortions. These are not abstract debates – it's a matter of life and human dignity.' ' After 22 weeks, it is absolutely not on' Though many readers do not oppose the concept of abortion, and the law does not change restrictions on when doctors can administer abortions, there is a shared sense that allowing mothers to terminate pregnancies up until full term is a step too far. Judith Gordon-Nichols says: 'Abortion can be appropriate if, for instance, a woman or girl is pregnant as a result of rape or if the baby would be very disabled, but otherwise, no. After 22 weeks, it is absolutely not on.' Sharing a similar sentiment, Nicola Bradley comments: 'I think this is disgraceful. I am pro-choice and think that every woman should have the right to a termination on demand, but only up to 16 weeks maximum. After that, it should only be available for medical or health reasons with proper controls and penalties.' Sheridan Cooper writes: 'There is no need for this. I'm pro-choice, but the cut-off point is there for a reason. Unless the mother's life is at risk, there should be no termination beyond 24 weeks.' 'It's a slippery slope to legal death at any age' The decision to decriminalise abortion has been made at a time when Parliament is also in an ongoing debate on the topic of assisted dying. Readers speculate that the change will set a precedent for any future ruling over assisted dying. Louis Degas points out: 'We allow mothers to kill their potentially very healthy unborn child, but we are still debating the right for terminally ill, sane adults to end their own lives. Something seems wrong.' On the other hand, Denise Crowe is concerned about the ease with which Parliament is allowing laws on lives to pass. 'Another totally wrong decision by members of Parliament,' she argues. 'Next, the assisted dying Bill will be passed, and then it will be a slippery slope to legal death at any age.'
