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Labour has privately indicated to the rail industry that it plans to resurrect part of the northern leg of HS2, Whitehall sources have told The Telegraph.
Louise Haigh, the shadow transport secretary, and her team are said to have suggested they want to reverse Rishi Sunak’s decision to axe the high-speed route between Birmingham and Crewe.
That is despite the fact that Sir Keir Starmer, the Labour leader, has publicly said it is “not possible” to revive the project because the Government has “blown the budget”.
At the Tory conference in October, the Prime Minister cancelled the HS2 line north of Birmingham to save £36 billion, pledging that the money recouped would be redirected towards improving local road, rail and bus services across the North.
The Telegraph has been told that Ms Haigh wants to resurrect phase 2a of the project, between Birmingham and Crewe, which would cost around £7 billion.
During a Commons debate in January, Stephen Morgan, the shadow rail minister, refused to rule out reviving the Birmingham to Crewe HS2 line.
Bill Esterson, the shadow roads minister, also hinted at the ambition in a social media post after addressing an industry reception this month.
“HS2 was due to reduce the number of lorry movements by 500,000 a year. It was a project that was designed to increase capacity, not least for freight,” he wrote.
“The cancellation by Rishi Sunak has left huge challenges for the industry, especially on the congested section of the network between Birmingham and Crewe. The Labour Party will work with the rail freight sector to ensure that we can grow freight capacity.”
Labour insiders said the party was keeping its options on the northern leg of HS2 open and would need to assess the level of damage done to the project.
Mr Sunak has ordered officials to remove safeguarding measures across the axed stretches of the line and to begin selling off compulsorily purchased land.
Labour has not committed to matching the Government’s commitment to spend £8.3 billion of the HS2 savings on long-term road maintenance.
Mark Harper, the Transport Secretary, suggested the party may be planning to use the cash to finance the Birmingham to Crewe line instead, telling the Commons: “That money is available only because we made the decision to cancel the second phase of HS2.
“Labour cannot give a straight answer on that question, and it has not committed to spending that £8.3 billion at all. Drivers know that they will only get that investment with a Conservative government.”
It comes amid growing questions over Labour’s pledge to renationalise the railways, with an expected announcement having been delayed.
Ms Haigh had promised to unveil the party’s blueprint for taking over the running of train services in mid-February, but it has still not materialised.
Sources insisted the party was still committed to the policy and said the announcement had been put back because of speculation about a May election. There have been claims, strongly denied by insiders, that Rachel Reeves, the shadow chancellor, has been blocking the plans over cost concerns.
Labour has said that it will take over train routes as private contracts expire, meaning the renationalisation will not cost anything to implement.