Anonymous3 days ago
A series of official reviews — culminating in the June 2025 Stewart Review — have concluded that HS2's cost explosion from £17 billion to nearly £67 billion was driven by political pressure to maintain unrealistic schedules, a "top-down vision" fixated on maximum speed over practical capacity, and chronic institutional weakness at both HS2 Ltd and the Department for Transport. The findings raise fundamental questions about whether Britain's governance model for mega-infrastructure is fit for purpose, particularly as the cancellation of Phase 2 leaves the North of England bearing the greatest economic cost.