HS2 report ignores West Midlands’ needs, says Chamber

BUSINESS leaders in Greater Birmingham have criticised a House of Lords committee report on HS2 as ignoring the needs of the West Midlands.

The report, published yesterday, said the Government hadn’t made the case for the £50bn high-speed rail project in terms of capacity or cost.

It also said that London would be the main beneficiary of HS2 and that to create a more level economic playing field in the UK, work on the project should start in the north.
 
But Jerry Blackett, the Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce (GBCC) chief executive who gave evidence to the committee, said: “The Chamber believes there is a strong economic case, especially for the West Midlands, for three reasons – capacity, regeneration, and rebalancing.
 
“And we believe the Lords committee has largely ignored evidence given to them about the impact outside of London and have focused on the capital.
 
“In terms of capacity, the existing rail infrastructure is rapidly becoming unfit for purpose due to increased demand. Birmingham New Street is already the busiest station outside of London.
 
“As the heart of the UK, it is essential that Birmingham and the West Midlands has the strongest possible rail infrastructure. A crowded rail system has serious consequences on other modes of travel.”
 
Blackett suggests HS2 will provide “massive opportunities” to redevelop Greater Birmingham and re-skill parts of the workforce in the West Midlands. Masterplans in the Eastside of Birmingham and at the Solihull interchange station show that the project can be used to spur on massive amounts of inward investment, he says.
 
“The regeneration at Kings Cross and St. Pancras provides a very good example of this,” he said.

“The project will also be crucial in helping to rebalance the UK economy.
 
“As London and the South East property prices severely overheat, investors will turn to the other major UK cities such as Birmingham and Manchester and HS2 makes this physically more possible.”