Leeds high-speed rail link just a vanity project says think-tank

THE Government’s proposed £32 billion HS2 high-speed rail project to link London and Birmingham, with a Y-shaped extension taking in Leeds, is “economically flawed”, according to a report today.

The scheme is a “political vanity project” and based on “bogus assumptions”, the report from the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) said.

The cost of the project will require a contribution of £1,000 per income tax payer and is not commercially viable, the report added.

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HS2, which is at the heart of the Government’s transport strategy, involves a new high-speed line through beauty spots in Tory heartlands from London to Birmingham, to be completed by around 2026.

There are also plans for a Y-shaped extension to Leeds and Manchester, and possibly further north, to be completed around 2032/33.

The IEA report said estimates made by the Government of demand on the route are very optimistic and added that:

• Claims that HS2 will bridge the north-south divide and bring regeneration should be treated with scepticism as the evidence is largely speculative.

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• Significant environmental and social costs are not included in the assessment of the economic case, with several areas likely to be affected by planning blight;

• The “green” credentials of the scheme are highly questionable. At 225mph, the trains will be the fastest in Europe and will consume disproportionate levels of power via the National Grid;

• The first five miles of the route, from Euston in London to Old Oak Common, will add almost 25% (around £4 billion) to the cost of the first phase but deliver negligible time savings.

Professor David Begg, director of the Campaign for High-Speed Rail, said: “I am hugely disappointed and shocked by the IEA’s analysis. This is a weak regurgitation of weak research carried out by the Taxpayers’ Alliance (TPA) in February, which has not stood up to public or industry scrutiny since.

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“Just like them, the IEA declare that the scheme will cost £1,000 per taxpayer. This is grossly disingenuous, as it fails to account for fare revenues, private investment and generated taxation that will offset the public investment.”

Prof Begg went on: “The IEA have completely failed to grasp the wider benefits of the high-speed rail project, which will create jobs, boost investment and spread the economic wealth of this country to places outside of the TPA heartlands of London and south east England.

“I would expect better from an otherwise reputable think-tank than to parrot misinformation and repackage the propaganda of opponents to the project who are clearly motivated by a mixture of small-state ideology and ‘not-in-my-back-yard’ attitudes.”