27.05.20
Council leaders call on Government to commit to HS2 East
Council leaders and business owners situated along the proposed ‘eastern leg’ of HS2 have called on Government (May 26) to commit to its progression in line with the ‘western leg’.
Their claim is that by progressing HS2 East, it will boost economic recovery after the Coronavirus crisis, and give towns and cities the capacity and connectivity improvements needed to thrive.
According to HS2 East Group, The Eastern Leg of HS2 alone will bring £4.2bn to the national economy and link five of the UK’s biggest city regions as well as serving 20% of the UK’s population and jobs and underpinning net zero carbon emissions by taking cars and freight off the roads.
The group has warned that delaying construction will ‘critically undermine’ the confidence of investors in the areas and in turn damage the Government’s plans for levelling up the rest of the country.
The group consists of cross-party political leaders, businesses and organisations, with Leader of Leeds City Council Cllr Judith Blake and Leader of Nottinghamshire County Council Cllr Kay Cutts MBE spearheading the movement for the proposed route through Leeds, Sheffield and the East Midlands.
The Government has made its commitment to delivering HS2 Phase 2B Western leg into Manchester without giving a schedule for the same legislation needed to progress the Eastern leg.
This has raised concerns within the group as to whether the lack of clarity symbolises a delay to delivery, having a major impact on towns and cities along the route suffering from network congestion.
Cllr Blake said:
“HS2 together with Northern Powerhouse Rail and Transpennine Route Upgrade will unlock the capacity and connectivity challenges the Leeds City Region faces, along with an economic benefit of £54 billion by 2050.
“For every year the eastern leg of HS2 is delayed, the Leeds City Region alone would suffer a loss of £1.7 billion while still relying on rail infrastructure built more than 100 years ago. Without progressing the eastern leg of HS2, our regions are being left behind.
“As we continue to assess the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak, the Government must commit to building the eastern leg of HS2 at the same time as the western leg, boosting our economic recovery and our long-term resilience, and creating a genuine shift towards the climate agenda. By doing so our regions can reach our potential.”
LISTEN: PODCAST WITH CLLR JUDITH BLAKE