THE "unaffordable" plans for a tunnel underneath Stonehenge have officially been shelved by the new Labour government. 

Speaking in the House of Commons this afternoon, chancellor of the exchequer Rachel Reeves has said that the scheme is unaffordable and that "if we cannot afford it, we cannot do it".

Reeves says the last government set out plans for a £150m investment fund but "not a single project has been supported from the fund".

Read more: MP 'deeply disappointed' by decision to scrap tunnel plans

The first of the transport projects to be scrapped are works on the A303 (the Stonehenge tunnel), A27 (Arundel bypass) and the Restoring our Railways scheme.

The Stonehenge Alliance has welcomed the announcement, but adds that it "believes that the scheme warrants scrapping altogether".

It added: "Not only is it grotesquely expensive, but even based on National Highways’ own figures the economic case for building it is fatally flawed. The road scheme would be lucky to create 50 pence in economic benefits for every £1 spent."

John Adams, chair of the Stonehenge Alliance said: “We welcome Rachel Reeves’ recognition that the country cannot afford this extravagant road scheme when schools are falling down and the NHS is in dire straits. However, she should have gone further. The road would be built at a loss and is a bad investment for UK plc. It should have been scrapped altogether.”

Tom Holland, historian and president of the Stonehenge Alliance, said: “This monstrous white elephant should have been put out of its misery long ago. Until the Government officially terminates the project, it will continue to leech taxpayer’s money. A delay is not good enough. Cancel it now!”

Wiltshire Council has expressed its disappointment at the announcement. 

Councillor Richard Clewer, Leader of Wiltshire Council, said: “We are extremely dismayed and disappointed at the Government’s decision to cancel the A303 Stonehenge tunnel project. These improvements are needed now to ease traffic congestion on the A303 and reduce traffic in our communities, and also ensure economic growth in Wiltshire, unlocking jobs and investment in the wider south-west region.

“It has taken many years of lobbying and working closely with partners, including National Highways, to bring this major infrastructure project to Wiltshire, and so it is a huge blow to get to the stage when construction is ready to begin, only to have this taken away from us at this late hour.

“There has already been £160m spent on this project, and cancelling it now wastes that huge investment, including the work to run a power supply up the A360 to the tunnel site. There is currently no viable alternative to the tunnel on the table. It would return the Stonehenge landscape to something like its original setting and allow local communities greater access to the ancient stones and the surrounding World Heritage Site.

“We will remain committed to this project and will continue to work closely with all stakeholders to try to bring this project back to Wiltshire, to reduce rat-running in our communities, to reduce journey times to the wider south-west, to boost economic growth in Wiltshire, and to unlock jobs and investment across the region.”