Flip-flopping Keir Starmer says he now backs HS2 – after originally campaigning against the high-speed rail link
FLIP-FLOPPING Sir Keir Starmer says he now backs HS2 – after originally campaigning against the high-speed rail link.
The Labour boss said the decision to scrap the Leeds leg of the line was a “betrayal of the North” and promised he would build it if he was PM.
He said: “The whole point of the promise of Northern Powerhouse Rail was a new line going from Manchester to Leeds.
“Trying to upgrade what you have got is a second-class option for the North.”
But the Labour leader campaigned against HS2 being built in his own backyard of Euston in London – even handing in petitions to Parliament lobbying for it to be halted.
Back in 2015 he tweeted: “Handing over petitions against HS2 in Parliament today with my neighbouring MP Tulip Siddiq.”
Alex Stafford, Tory MP for Rother Valley, said: “Classic Keir Starmer says one thing and changes his mind when there is chep electoral advantage. He is veering all over the place.”
Fellow Conservative Luke Hall said: “Having previously handed in petitions against HS2, it seems Keir Starmer has had a principles point failure and has now changed track and completely reversed his position.”
But Labour said the party had long backed HS2, and that Sir Keir changed his mind once the Euston stage of the project went ahead.
The government confirmed it had ditched the Leeds leg of the rail link yesterday – sparking fury among Northerners hit by the cutback.
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