Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Annual Report on Major Projects 2020–21 by from the Infrastructure and Projects Authority, published on 15 July, (1) why historical data of eight years of 'amber/red' or 'red' colour ratings has been deleted, (2) why the HS2 project has been separated into Phases 1, 2a and 2b, and (3) on what (a) costs, (b) benefits, and (c) timetable, are the revised assessments of Phases 1 and 2b made; and what steps they plan to take to ensure these are assessed as 'amber' or 'green' in the 2021–22 report.

The IPA is not responsible for the individual GMPP projects, and the decisions to re-assess, or cancel a project belong to the relevant Departmental Accounting Officer.

The previous Delivery Confidence Assessment (DCA) rating colours for HS2 are not shown as this is the first time that the individual phases of the project have been presented in the IPA’s Annual Report, previously HS2 has been presented as a single project.

The IPA will continue to work closely with all departments and delivery bodies, including the Department for Transport and HS2 Ltd to ensure efficient and effective delivery to drive construction innovation and capture and share lessons learned.