Balls’s threat to abandon support for HS2 sets him up for war with Adonis

Andrew Adonis, the head of Labour's growth review and the architect of the project, has warned that cancelling the programme would be an "act of national self-mutilation".

By George Eaton

The most significant line in Ed Balls’s speech to the Labour conference was on HS2. Having previously warned that there would be no “blank cheque” from his party for the new high-speed line, he went further today, questioning whether it was “the best way to spend £50bn for the future of our country”.

Balls said:

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George Eaton

@georgeeaton

George Eaton is the New Statesman's senior editor (politics). He writes the Morning Call political briefing three times a week and contributes columns, features, interviews and leaders.