Gary Neville says the Tories have turned their back on northern cities “that make us great” in a rousing and impassioned interview.
The Conservatives look set to ditch the northern leg of the HS2 project in a monumental blow for the north, delivering the news in Manchester in an old railway station.
Manchester United and several northern businesses have written to Rishi Sunak urging him to not cancel the HS2 leg between Birmingham and Manchester.
More than 30 large and small organisations from Greater Manchester and the surrounding area have called on the Prime Minister to commit to building the high-speed railway in its entirety and avoid “economic self-sabotage”.
Several other notable organisations – including Manchester Airports Group (MAG), the University of Manchester and Co-operatives UK – signed a joint letter warning the Prime Minister he was risking the “prosperity” of the North.
Neville has also spoken out, saying the Tories had failed “not just on this, on everything”.
Speaking with LBC, he said: “I think what you say you should do, you should do and this was always about connecting the country.
“I mean, the idea that we don’t connect Manchester with Leeds, with Sheffield, with Newcastle, with Liverpool – and all the other northern cities and make us great.
“And the connectivity – we rely upon transport links, we rely upon the transport links to ensure we connect our cities. And the idea of not connecting it, from a symbolic point of view, is just really…”
Adding: “You talk about levelling up, I mean, they’ve done everything but level up – not just on this, on everything.”
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