Scrapping HS2 to Manchester risks 'north south chasm', says Andy Burnham

Andy Burnham says scrapping HS2's Manchester line would risk the north-south divide becoming a 'north-south chasm'.

The Greater Manchester Mayor spoke out as the government refuses to confirm that the high-speed railway line will come to Manchester.

Mr Burnham, speaking from Bolton, told Good Morning Britain: "If you speak to people here in Bolton but anywhere actually across the north of England, we have to put up with daily chaos on the railways. And why do we have to do that, because we have Victorian infrastructure across the north of England, and it can't cope with the capacity that is needed.

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"If the government pulls the plug on HS2, in effect it will be leaving us with that Victorian infrastructure for the rest of this century when the southern half of the country has everything: HS2 between London and Birmingham, the Elizabeth Line, well you name it, they've got everything down there.

"It would be a recipe for the north-south divide to become a north-south chasm, and that's why we're saying to the government today 'don't pull the plug on it'. We want to see that north south east west infrastructure put in place to give us a modern rail system right across the whole of the UK.

"But this decision could completely pull the plug on that."

HS2 has already seen £2.3 billion spent on the project.

However, a photograph of a leaked documents which was published by The Independent suggests curtailing the route at Birmingham could save £35 billion. The railway plans, which were announced by the former Labour government but backed by successive Tory