Critics of HS2 are scenting blood on all sides now. As the Sun reports, giving Ed Balls the final say on the project is another sign that the Labour party is at least constructing a coffin for the project, even if it isn’t driving the nails in just yet.
Meanwhile, on the Tory side, I understand that there are three whipping operations springing up around the report stage and third reading of the preparation bill next week. The PM’s backbench envoy John Hayes and his PPS Mel Stride are the most active from the government side, even though Hayes is not a whip. One Tory MP observing these things tells me: ‘Whenever the chips are down, he goes around drawing up lists of possible troublemakers and working out how to get alongside them.’ Anyone who has attended parties or drinks events where naughty Tory MPs lurk will testify to Hayes’ abilities when it comes to holding court from a corner of the room, drawing in would-be rebels like a magnet.
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