HS2 firms and West Midlands mayor in 11th-hour push to save Manchester leg

Contractors offer to review project and identify ways to cut costs, so Rishi Sunak keeps it on track

• HS2: nine key numbers that illustrate the dilemma over rail project’s future

Britain’s biggest HS2 contractors have launched an 11th-hour drive to convince Rishi Sunak not to cancel the high-speed rail line to Manchester, pledging to find cost savings and private investment to make the scheme viable.

On a day of renewed chaos for the government over the rail line’s future, Andy Street, the Conservative mayor of the West Midlands, told the prime minister he was working hard to secure support from the firms involved to slash costs.