The Government’s Transport Secretary has said that funding promised to the North and Midlands following the cancellation of HS2 was ‘fantasy money.’
Following the cancellation of the northern leg of HS2 in Autumn 2023 under the previous Conservative Government, it was announced that funding for the project would be reallocated to improve transport infrastructure in the North and Midlands.
In Parliament, Tom Gordon, Liberal Democrat MP for Harrogate, asked the Secretary of State for Transport, Heidi Alexander, when the North could expect to see this investment.
In response to Mr Gordon’s question the Secretary of State labelled the proposed investment in northern transport as “fantasy money”. Despite this Ms Alexander went on to add that the Government “are working through a pipeline of transport infrastructure projects, and will make announcements alongside the spending review.”
Reacting to Ms Alexander’s comments in Parliament, the leader of Hull City Council, Cllr Mike Ross has said: “Hull was assured investment to fix roads, bridges and other infrastructure would follow when HS2 was scrapped. Residents here in Hull and across the North will feel incredibly let down hearing government ministers call this ‘fantasy money’.
“Hull’s Labour MPs should be demanding answers from Keir Starmer and Heidi Alexander. I expect to see both Karl Turner and Emma Hardy, who just this week called for more support for Hull’s infrastructure, to be banging on the doors of Number 10 demanding that Hull gets its fair share of funding.”
As the cancellation of HS2 and the subsequent funding commitments were made under the previous Government, the new Labour Government has often refrained from directly addressing the funding. An example of this was seen when the Chancellor Rachel Reeves visited Hull to attend the The Great Northern Conference in December. At the conference, the leader of East Riding Council, Cllr Anne Handley stood up and said to Ms Reeves: “As a part of the settlement when HS2 got cancelled, we were offered, an extra £300m. Can you let me know if that is something you are going to support going forward? It was promised.” Ms Reeves somewhat deflected Cllr Handley’s question, saying: “I’ll have to let Angela Rayner set out the details in due course, but I absolutely take your point.”
Cllr Handley has said she is “really cross” after hearing Ms Alexander saying that money promised to the north “fantasy money”. Cllr Handley added that it is “unacceptable.”
By: Andrew Spence, LDRS
