Fund to hand out £4.7bn from axed HS2 northern section to smaller projects

Ministers say smaller towns and cities in north of England and Midlands to benefit from scrapping of Leeds and Manchester linesAbout £4.7bn that would have been spent bringing HS2 to Manchester and Leeds is to be reallocated to transport projects in smaller towns and cities in the north of England and Midlands, ministers have said.The money is specifically for communities that are outside city regions, in places such as Blackpool, Hull and Leicester, as well as counties including Staffords