A government-commissioned review into HS2 recommends “pausing” the second phase of the project while experts look at whether other lines could help link Birmingham to Manchester and Leeds instead.
Building the high-speed rail link HS2 could cost up to £106bn, according to the unpublished report seen by the Financial Times. In 2015, HS2 was set to cost £56bn.
Claire Walker, co-executive director of policy at the British Chambers of Commerce, told the Wake Up to Money programme that the reports were “quite concerning”.
She said: “Business communities are united that this project should be delivered and should be delivered in full. There is no project that has been proposed that will go so far in delivering the transformational change to the Northern business communities as this project will.
However she added that “no government project should receive a blank cheque”.
On Friday, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said a decision on whether to go ahead with the project would be made “very soon”.
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