Delay or changes on the table as Sunak targets 'best value' HS2 option

RISHI Sunak is considering "alternative options" or delaying the northern leg of HS2 to stop more taxpayers' cash being wasted on the project.

- Martyn Brown

The Prime Minister wants the "best value" solution amid warnings the final bill for the huge infrastructure scheme could spiral to £180billion.

Mr Sunak has not yet taken a final decision on whether to scrap the Birmingham to Manchester section.

But the uncertainty has sparked a furious debate, with political bighitters clashing over HS2's future.

Former Conservative leader Lord Hague says it is a "national disgrace" and should have been cancelled years ago.

But Boris Johnson, George Osborne and Lord Heseltine are among prominent Tories warning against abandoning the plans.

Mr Sunak is being advised by Andrew Gilligan a long-standing critic of the line, who called it the "greatest infrastructure mistake in half a century".