Rishi Sunak has insisted he is taking the north “seriously” despite inflicting further delays to the HS2 rail project.

The Prime Minister was facing criticism for delaying the construction of Birmingham to Crewe leg of the high speed services by two years.

Mr Sunak, speaking to journalists on a high-speed Eurostar service to Paris, insisted he was not betraying the northern voters that handed the Conservatives their majority in 2019.

"The high-speed line was due for extension between Birmingham and Crewe between 2030 and 2034 to help boost transport in the north of England. But he is instead “prioritising” the initial services between Old Oak Common in west London’s suburbs and Birmingham Curzon Street." according to Transport Secretary Mark Harper.

John Foster, the Confederation of British Industry’s policy unit programme director, said: “Delays to projects may create short-term savings, but they can ultimately lead to higher overall costs and slow down the UK’s transition to a better, faster and greener transport network.”

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