Transport Secretary James Cleverly is preparing to defy Treasury pressure and recommend the full HS2 network be built, despite fresh delays and a £4.2 billion cost-cutting plan unveiled last week. Insiders confirm Cleverly will argue that abandoning Phase 2a would trigger immediate job losses of 3,000 workers and waste £9.6 billion already spent on the project.

Cleverly’s intervention follows a leaked internal report showing Treasury officials had privately concluded that scaling back HS2 to a truncated Birmingham-only service would save just £2.1 billion—half the savings touted in public. The transport secretary has dismissed these estimates as "unrealistic," citing network design complexities and contractual penalties that make partial cancellation more expensive than maintaining the full route.

Sources close to the Department for Transport say Cleverly is prepared to bypass civil service advice and take the case directly to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, arguing that a full network remains "nationally vital" for economic connectivity and levelling-up goals. The push comes as senior HS2 Ltd executives warn that restarting mothballed tunnelling work between Crewe and Manchester could costs an additional £1.8 billion if delayed beyond 2026.

Trade unions representing HS2 workers have welcomed Cleverly’s stance, with Unite’s national officer for transport declaring that "any move to gut the project would be a betrayal of workers and communities who have bet everything on this railway." The union has already balloted members for potential industrial action if Phase 2a faces cancellation.

Opposition MPs have accused the government of "kicking the can down the road" while failing to secure funding for the full network. Labour’s shadow transport secretary Louise Haigh called the situation "a mess of the government’s own making," pointing to inconsistent Treasury signals that have stalled private investment. "Businesses in the North need certainty, not another round of broken promises," Haigh said.

The latest developments expose deep divisions within Whitehall. Cabinet Office officials have privately warned that Cleverly’s plan could breach the government’s own fiscal rules, while Treasury mandarins argue that alternative transport schemes—including upgraded conventional rail and local metro expansions—could deliver better value for taxpayers. A Downing Street source confirmed that Sunak is reviewing both options but has yet to make a final decision.

Amid the political turbulence, HS2 Ltd has quietly awarded a £340 million contract to a consortium led by Balfour Beatty and Vinci for early enabling works on Phase 2b. The move signals an attempt to maintain momentum despite the uncertainty, but critics argue it risks locking the government into a half-built railway that may never reach Manchester.

1. London to Birmingham — Operational delays push completion to 2029, adding £3.2bn to costs
2. Birmingham to Crewe — Phase 2a now due 2032; 1,200 workers face relocation or redundancy
3. Crewe to Manchester — Tunnelling hiatus adds £1.8bn; final completion pushed to 2038+

The HS2 saga entered its latest chapter last week when HS2 Ltd revealed it had secured only 60% of the required land for Phase 2b, raising fears of compulsory purchase orders that could spark fresh legal challenges. With the general election approaching, the government faces mounting pressure to resolve the impasse—or risk leaving a half-finished project as its legacy.