More than 80% of North West business leaders think that Prime Minister Rishi Sunak should not scrap HS2's northern leg from Birmingham to Manchester, .
Over 1,000 people responded to BusinessLive's poll on LinkedIn last week amid speculation that the government is considering a major cut to the high-speed project.
A decision had first been expected to be made before the Conservative Party Conference in Manchester which started on Sunday, October 1. However, an announcement could now be made this week, it has been suggested.
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In , 82% of people said that the Prime Minister should not cut the northern leg of HS2, with 14% saying he should while 3% said they were not sure.
The figures come as Chancellor Jeremy Hunt, when speaking to broadcasters on Monday, repeatedly said it is not the "appropriate time" to announce whether to cut the northern leg of the high-speed rail project.
He told Sky News: "In terms of things like the northern leg of HS2, whatever decision we make, we will take very careful note of the need to have proper economic infrastructure throughout the whole country. In terms of this specific decision I’m afraid you will have to wait. We will make the announcement at the appropriate time."
The Prime Minister has faced a backlash from his predecessors, businesses and leaders across the North for wavering over whether HS2 will ever reach Manchester.
Theresa May was the latest former premier to urge Rishi Sunak not to ditch the Birmingham to Manchester leg of the high-speed rail project that was designed to link the North and London.
A drastic cost-cutting exercise could also see it end at Old Oak Common in the capital's western suburbs rather than reach its centre.
The government has stressed the need to assess the value for money, with Mr Hunt questioning why delivering HS2 is costing vastly more than similar projects in Europe.
"I need to have an answer why it costs 10 times more to build high speed rail in this country than it does across the Channel in France," he told LBC radio.
After the Sun reported that the rail project has 167 members of staff working in its HR department at a cost of £8m a year, Mr Hunt said some of the spend on public relations costs is "totally unacceptable".
