Fresh fears have been raised that HS2 may not reach Euston as the new Chancellor is set to announce “very tough decisions” on public spending.

Rachel Reeves is expected to accuse the previous government of leaving a black hole of around £20 billion in the public finances when she speaks in the House of Commons this afternoon (July 29).

Appearing on LBC this morning, Cabinet Office minister Pat McFadden said there will have to be “some difficult decisions” on spending.

When asked about HS2, he described the current state of the project as a “mess”.

McFadden said: “This is a project that’s had one limb after another chopped from its original vision.

“Like everything else we’ve inherited, we’ve got to respond to the situation on that bequeathed to us.”

His comments have raised fears that HS2 might no longer end at Euston, and instead only make it as far as Old Oak Common.

Former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak scrapped the second leg of HS2 from Birmingham to Manchester last autumn, but said the line would stop at Euston, if enough private investment could be found.

It is not clear if HS2 will feature in Reeves’ statement this afternoon, but The Sunday Times has reported that ditching the Euston leg is under consideration.

Other infrastructure projects reported as likely to face the axe include a £1.7 billion road tunnel near Stonehenge and a bypass at Arundel in West Sussex, as well as 40 new hospitals and plans to restore 45 railway lines promised by Boris Johnson.