2023-10-04 08:57:36
Intervening in a debate on transport, Henri Murison is boiling. ” Ridiculous ! Absolutely ridiculous,” says the director of the Northern Powerhouse Partnership, a partnership of private companies intended to promote economic development in the north of England. Two seats away, Assistant Transport Minister Richard Holden awkwardly defends Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s imminent formalization of the cancellation of the portion of the future high-speed rail line (HS2) between the cities of Birmingham and Manchester. Awkward timing as the Tories hold their annual conference in… Manchester.
“I’m fed up with them treating people like children and lying in the media,” continues Henri Murison, under the approving gaze of other business leaders. He recalls that the new line, “in addition to opening up the North, would have freed up existing passenger train lines for the transport of goods. The return on investment had to be considerable in relation to the sums invested.”
In his eyes, there is no doubt: “A challenge would mean that the rail network project in the north of the country and, more broadly, the Leveling Up (“recovery”, central project in the 2019 electoral program of former Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Editor’s note) end. How does this reflect the credibility of the UK as a place to invest? ! » This official is all the more embittered as the slogan of the conservative congress this year is none other than: “Long-term decisions for a better future. »
Spiraling costs
Endorsed in January 2012 by the then Prime Minister David Cameron, the tens of billions of pounds of public investment in HS2 (High Speed 2) characterized the Conservative Party’s desire to rebalance growth towards the former industrial regions of the North, long forgotten in favor of London and the south of England.
Today, Rishi Sunak points out the spiraling costs, which have more than doubled to reach 82 billion euros, linked in particular to multiple changes to the route after complaints from MPs from the constituencies crossed and the recent increase in transport rates. ‘interest. “Rishi Sunak has been portrayed as a pragmatist trat the forefront of new technologies, estimates Tim Bale, professor of political science at Queen Mary University of London. In fact, itis an ideaologist, a die-hard Thatcherite who believes the road to nirvana lies through less spending andthis timets ! »
The “red wall” cuts England in two
Conservative members and elected officials know that this measure will go down badly with voters in the North, hence the gloom that reigns inside the ultra-secure enclosure of the Manchester convention center. The promises of Leveling Up made it possible to win in 2019 around twenty industrial constituencies historically won by Labor – the famous “red wall” which, from Liverpool (west) to Hull (east), cuts England in two.
“If we remain stuck with old infrastructure and the southern half of the country benefits from new lines, the North-South divide will become a chasm, argued the Labor mayor of Manchester, Andy Burnham. Quite the opposite of the Leveling Up that we were promised. »
There is no doubt that with 15 to 20 points behind the Labor Party, according to the polls, the Conservatives would have preferred to avoid comparison with the transformations of the transport system undertaken for several years by Manchester City Hall. By 2025, all of the city’s buses and trams, previously in the hands of multiple private operators, will come under the management of the municipality. Fares for journeys have been halved to £2 (€2.30), with a daily cap of £5 (€5.75) per day. In Manchester, long-term decisions are the preserve of Labour, not the Tories.
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HS2 is falling behind schedule
High Speed 2 (HS2) is the high-speed train currently under construction. It plans to connect London with major cities in the Midlands and the north of England, including Birmingham and Manchester.
Its aim is to reduce travel times, to create more space on the rail network and more jobs outside London.
HS2 faces delays and soaring costs. The rail link between Birmingham and Manchester is set to be suspended. Another part of the route, between the East Midlands and Leeds, has already been canceled for 2021.
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