Ponzi Scheme! Lord Michael Gross on Andrew Adonis' £100bn HS2 fraud 'The UK establishment is broken'

HS2 is in ‘serious situation’ and needs a reset, says new boss

https://politicsthisweek.wordpress.com/2025/01/09/not-the-bcfm-politics-show-presented-by-tony-gosling-222/

Admission comes after the Government states the estimated £66 billion cost of the railway project is not ‘reliable’ 30 December 2024

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2024/12/30/hs2-is-in-very-serious-situation-admits-new-boss/

HS2 is in a “very serious situation” that requires a “fundamental reset”, the beleaguered rail project’s new boss has admitted.

Mark Wild, chief executive of HS2 Limited, made the statement after the Government said its estimated £66 billion cost was not an “accurate or reliable” figure.

Earlier this month, HS2 Limited estimated the cost of building the railway would be between £54 billion and £66 billion in 2019 prices – between £67 billion and £83 billion in current prices.

But appearing before the Commons public accounts committee, Dame Bernadette Kelly, the Department for Transport’s (DfT’s) top civil servant, said those figures were not “reliable” and an agreed estimate was unlikely to be produced until “well into 2025”.

The £66 billion estimate, which does not take inflation into account, is based on costings from 2019.

Mr Wild, who joined HS2 Limited at the start of December, said on Monday: “New railways provide better journeys and they boost economic growth by fuelling investment in communities and businesses.

“The prize is clear. However, the programme is in a very serious situation that requires a fundamental reset to enable it to be delivered to the lowest feasible cost.

“I am committed to delivering this reset over the coming year to ensure the railway can be brought into service safely and efficiently.”

So far, £32.8 billion has been spent on HS2 since it was approved in 2012. In 2020, the public accounts committee said the DfT had “failed to provide Parliament with clear warning that the programme was going off-course and value for money was at risk”.

It also comes after revelations that Sir Jon Thompson is to step down as chairman in the spring.

HS2 Limited published an update outlining the progress in building the 140-mile line between London and the West Midlands.

It said 38 of the 55 miles of twin-bore tunnels have been excavated, and 58 per cent of engineering work to prepare the ground for the railway’s cuttings, embankments, stations and landscaping has been completed.

‘Feats of civil engineering’

Work has also started on constructing 158 out of 227 viaducts and bridges.
More than 31,000 people are employed on the programme, which has 350 active construction sites.

Mr Wild said: “HS2 represents a significant investment in Britain’s future and in the last month I’ve been inspired by the hugely impressive feats of civil engineering taking shape right along the route.”

Construction projects expected to be completed in 2025 include excavation of the 8.4-mile Northolt Tunnel in west London and both bores of the 3.5-mile Bromford Tunnel that will carry the line in and out of Birmingham.