HS2: How will Rishi Sunak's u-turn be met in the North West?

"The facts have changed," says Rishi Sunak, "and when that happens you need the courage to change direction."

The prime minister has certainly done that. No longer high speed rail from north to south. Rather a focus on east to west.

Scrapping the northern leg of HS2 from the West Midlands to Manchester has been the worst kept secret in politics for days if not weeks.

The PM finally confirmed the decision in his closing speech at the Conservative party conference.

It is ironic that he did so here in Manchester, standing in a disused railway station.

Mr Sunak's new alternative scheme - Network North - will see investment in hundreds of smaller transport projects across the country.

The aim is to join up the great northern cities, resulting in faster journeys between Hull and Manchester.

We're likely to see further electrification of railway lines, more money to expand Greater Manchester's Metrolink network, the upgrading of some key roads, and the retention of the £2 cap on bus fares.

The PM reckons "it's what the North really needs" and that Network North will see towns, rather than just the big cities, receive investment.

And the local Tory MPs I spoke to after their party leader's conference speech were all for it.

"No-one talks to me about HS2 on the doorsteps of Burnley," said the Lancashire town's MP Anthony Higginbotham.

While that is probably true, high speed rail was never only about getting to and from London faster.

Rather, it was also about capacity, freeing up room on the railway network for freight.

North West businesses including Bruntwood, Manchester United and Kraft Heinz, have urged Mr Sunak to reconsider his u-turn, saying HS2 represented "a once in a lifetime opportunity we cannot afford to throw away".

Greater Manchester's Mayor Andy Burnham, meanwhile, labelled the prime minister's decision "just so wrong".

How will the government's changed approach go down with voters though?

Scrapping HS2 will undoubtedly save a lot of money.

More potholes may get fixed instead, while local bus and rail journeys may improve too

And let's not forget, HS2 was never hugely popular with vast swathes of the public in the first place.

Bolton West and Atherton MP Chris Green thinks the decision should appeal to voters in the region who are "getting to and from work" and have "family commitments ... these things matter on a daily basis".

There's always a but though in politics.

Many voters really don't like broken promises, and let's not forget that the government has spent 13 years saying high speed rail would come to Manchester.

And while it now won't, it WILL still go all the way from the West Midlands to London.

Many voters will now want to see real spades in the ground here in the North West.

There's certainly a huge demand for the "saved" £36bn from HS2 to be spent in our region.

Mr Sunak has been accused of lacking ambition to really level up the North.

Henri Murison, chief executive of Northern Powerhouse Partnership, said "in 100 years' time the economy of the north will be smaller because of this decision".

But the PM is unrepentant. To his critics, he says there is "nothing ambitious about pouring money into the wrong project".

It remains to be seen how his decision will be met by voters.

After a week spent talking about the future of rail, Mr Sunak's MPs are now having to hit the road back to their constituencies.

Why? The latest rail strikes...

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