PLANS for a high-speed rail link to the edge of Liverpool have been quietly dumped, apparently to save money – adding to the journey time to London.

The 250mph trains were expected to run at top-speed from the capital to just south of Manchester, before slowing to conventional speed for the final 30-odd miles into Lime Street.

But The Liverpool Post can reveal that the trains will now switch to standard speed around 50 miles further south, at a point just north of Birmingham.

The move would make journeys from Liverpool to London a full 38 minutes slower than Manchester to London.

Last night, the department for transport (Dft) – which kept the change under wraps – was accused of a “sneaky move” that would leave Liverpool passengers in the slow lane.

Furthermore, the economic consequences could be devastating, ministers were warned – because the new plans will hand a huge advantage to Manchester in the battle for investment and jobs.

High-speed trains (HS2) from the capital were expected to take just 16 minutes longer to reach Liverpool than Manchester, once the second stage of the £32bn project – from Birmingham to Manchester – is completed, in 2032.

That difference in journey times has now more than doubled to 38 minutes, a potentially clinching factor for any business deciding where to set up in the North West.

One academic, who has studied the impact of high-speed rail lines on different cities in France, warned last night that Liverpool would be “collateral damage” – as Manchester prospered.

Labour vowed to press ministers to think again, when an initial consultation on routes and stations north of Birmingham is held later this year.

Maria Eagle, the Garston and Halewood MP and Labour’s transport spokeswoman, said: “I will be writing to ministers, to demand an explanation for this sneaky move.

“They clearly see getting to Manchester as more important than getting to Liverpool, yet are failing to be upfront and honest about a slower journey time than in the original plans.”