A New Year’s resolution for government: Stop setting targets January 9, 2025 From HS2 to Net Zero, governments have a habit of setting ambitious long-term goals and failing to deliver. Instead of targets, we need long-term plans to fix the nation’s problems, says John Oxley The New Year almost always brings with it talk of resolutions, intentions and targets. This is true of governments too . In [...]
HS2’s new boss Mark Wild warns the company is in a ‘very serious situation’ December 30, 2024 HS2 is in a “very serious situation” and needs a “fundamental reset”, the new boss of the company building the high-speed railway has warned. Mark Wild, chief executive of HS2 Ltd, said he is committed to ensuring the railway opens “safely and efficiently”. Earlier this month, HS2 Ltd estimated the cost of building the railway [...]
Mark Kleinman: Hold the Telegraph front page – then hold it some more December 27, 2024 Mark Kleinman is Sky News’ City Editor and is the man who gets the Square Mile talking in his weekly Morning Wire column. This week he tackles the Telegraph bid, Mike Ashley’s failed Boohoo approach and an oil deal in the North Sea I suspect you’d have got long odds on January 1 on the auction of The Daily [...]
New HS2 chief can’t be sorry for £100m bat shed December 19, 2024 Mark Wild said construction of the structure in Buckinghamshire was the "most appropriate" way to "comply with the law."
Does Britain care more about bats than people? December 19, 2024 For each animal saved by the £100m the government spent on a ‘bat tunnel’ for HS2 we could have stopped 76 children dying of malaria. The affair illustrates the state’s total inability to consider trade-offs, says Samuel Hughes Last month saw much discussion of the £100m ‘bat tunnel’ built for HS2. There are several morals [...]
Labour’s growth gamble will decide Britain’s future December 18, 2024 Labour’s plan to invest for growth is Keynesianism 101. Delivering on it will require discipline and competence — recent history gives us plenty of reasons to be sceptical, says Damian Pudner Britain’s economic fortunes have hit a moment of reckoning. Public debt has ballooned to an eye-watering £2.8 trillion, roughly 100 per cent of GDP. [...]
HS2 chair to step down as cost swells to £66bn December 17, 2024 The chair of the company behind High Speed Two (HS2) is to stop down next year, it has been announced. Sir Jon Thompson has served on the board of HS2 Ltd for almost four years after first joining as a non-executive director in April 2021. He was appointed as the company’s chair in February 2023 [...]
HS2: Rail minister reveals new plans for Euston terminus December 11, 2024 Lord Peter Hendy, the rail minister, appeared in front of the Commons' transport committee on Wednesday alongside senior officials from the DfT.
HS2: Costs for London Euston section reach over £7.5bn December 10, 2024 Rachel Reeves confirmed in the Autumn Budget HS2 will terminate at Euston station, following a political kerfuffle over how to find the necessary funding.
Costain wins major HS2 contract December 4, 2024 The deal will see Costain supply tunnel and lineside mechanical and electrical system over a seven-year period.