Danny Alexander defends 'transformational' HS2 The Government has been accused of overstating the benefits of HS2, which will link London to Manchester and Leeds via Birmingham, and the likes of Boris Johnson and Peter Mandelson have recently added to those criticising the investment. However, Mr Alexander said that "we know from countries around the world that improved connectivity is something that makes a difference." "The [NAO report] does not take into account the much wider economic benefits of these projects," Mr Alexander said. If we simply followed the economic model [the report is] suggesting, this country might not have completed the M1 in the 1960s or completed the M25 in the 1980s. MPs were grilling Mr Alexander over the Treasury's latest spending review, ahead of questioning Chancellor George Osborne on Thursday. Mr Alexander said the Government had a good record on infrastructure projects, despite criticism from Labour MP Andy Love that it was bad at "getting diggers on sites" and in spite of delays to its rural broadband scheme. He also defended the Treasury's ring-fencing of health, education, pension and aid budgets, despite warnings that protecting these departments would pile extra pressure on other departments. Earlier, MPs had heard from business leaders from the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR) and the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), both of whom raised warnings about HS2"s benefit. The CEBR's Doug McWilliams said "the costs outweigh the benefits," while the CBI's John Cridland said that although there is a "strong case" for better transport, "for HS2 to go ahead it has to wash its face."