Rishi Sunak’s HS2 U-turn sparks fury in the north

Rishi Sunak is facing a backlash from his own party over his decision to scrap the northern leg of HS2 to Manchester, which he has yet to officially announce despite widespread reports and speculation. The chancellor is expected to confirm the controversial move at the Conservative conference in Manchester this week, where he will also unveil a package of alternative transport projects for the north of England. However, he has refused to be drawn on the issue in a series of media interviews, insisting that he will not be “rushed” into a decision and that everything is “going well” with HS2. Sunak told BBC Breakfast on Tuesday: “I know you want to keep asking, I know there’s lots of speculation, but all I can say is I’m not going to be forced into a premature decision because it’s good for someone’s TV programme. What I want to do is make the right decision for the country. This is an enormous amount of people’s money, taxpayers’ money, billions and billions of pounds. We shouldn’t be