Trees and a minister felled in vain

Acknowledgements to
Private Eye 

 House of Commons Hansard reminds us that HS2 was originally put before the Commons by Labour shortly before the general election of 2010. It was however supported by opposition parties. Typical was this contribution by Norman Baker, shadow Liberal Democrat minister for the brief he was later to assume in government:

I thank the Minister [Sadiq Khan, now mayor of London] for today’s welcome statement. Britain has trailed behind Europe for a long time on high speed rail. I also very much welcome the fact that something for which we have been calling for years—long before the Conservatives, while they were still winning the cold war—has finally been brought forward by the Government. Can the Minister confirm that the Government’s high speed rail scheme will provide extra capacity for the railways, enable modal shift from air, and help economic development in the regions? Will he also confirm that it will be very popular, as I think it will be, given the enormous response to the Javelin trains in the south-east?

I acknowledge the cross-party attempts by the Secretary of State to involve all parties in the House in a constructive dialogue on the issue and to make it a national project. I thank the Minister for the access I have had to HS2 and for the private briefing the Secretary of State gave me a few weeks ago, which for some reason the Conservatives apparently rejected. Does the Minister agree that we are talking about a matter of national importance that requires consensus in the House, and that all parties ought to approach it in that way? Does he therefore share my concern at the Conservatives’ attempt to create a kind of synthetic candy-floss row, rather than trying to move forward in a sensible, constructive way? They appear to be putting short-term politics before the long-term interests of the country, which brings into question their commitment to high speed rail.

Will the Minister acknowledge that funding is a difficult issue, given the current state of the public finances? Will he consider the suggestion put forward by my hon. Friend the Member for Twickenham (Dr Cable), the Lib Dem shadow Chancellor—the construction of a national infrastructure bank, perhaps using pension funds, which will help to guarantee stability in the funding for such major national projects? Does the Minister also agree that it is important when such projects are under way that there should be no cuts in existing rail budgets that are designed to promote the network in other ways for passengers? Will he give an undertaking—as my party will, and as all parties should—that other rail budgets will not be raided to pay for high speed rail?

I congratulate HS2 on producing a route that, I think, minimises environmental damage while maximising the usefulness of the line. Obviously the route is a matter for consultation, but what we have now is a useful start for consultation purposes. Can the Minister also confirm that there is a long-term commitment to get to Scotland, and not simply with high speed trains on conventional lines but with a high speed network? Does he have any idea when that will feature in the time scale of the current project?

Dame Cheryl Gillan (extracted
from a Western Mail photo)

Not all Conservative MPs were delighted with the route proposed. David Lidington and Cheryl Gillan, representing constituencies which were to be seriously affected by the construction, were prominent in a Westminster Hall debate of 23rd March 2010.

David Lidington, introducing the debate, said: 

I believe that the route that the Government have said they prefer will seriously and irreparably damage the quality of my constituents' lives and the landscape of the Chiltern hills. Two aspects of the proposed route caused me particular dismay once I began to inspect the details. First, the plan for a viaduct to carry the railway around the western perimeter of Aylesbury, coming at the nearest point just 70 metres from people's homes, looks certain to cause massive damage to the quality of life of many hundreds of my constituents.

Secondly, I share the sense of outrage expressed to me in letters, e-mails and conversations with constituents since the Secretary of State's announcement on 11 March that the Government plan to route the line through the Chilterns area of outstanding natural beauty-landscape that successive Governments, whether Labour or Conservative, have designated as of exceptional national importance.

Mrs Gillan (as she was then) asked:

I endorse all the comments of my hon. Friend Mr. Lidington. We can see the level of interest in the debate by the presence of my hon. and learned Friend Mr. Grieve and my hon. Friend Mr. Goodman, who are sitting alongside us, but who are precluded from speaking because of the brevity of the debate.

I have a few simple questions for the Minister. First, no environmental impact assessment has been published. I had a meeting with his boss, Lord Adonis, the other day and I was told that he had no intention of publishing an impact assessment before the general election. How can that be right? When can we expect to see the impact assessment for the Chilterns?

Though both parties denied it, Cheryl Gillan's opposition to HS2 was widely reported as being the reason for David Cameron terminating her cabinet career as Welsh Secretary under the coalition government. The lack of transparency highlighted by both MPs was to continue, though millions would be wasted on various forms of PR.

Now the fourth prime minister after Cameron has decided that HS2 should be truncated. It is now to be not much more than a quick way to get from West London to Birmingham Airport. 

On the face of it, there is good news for Wales in that part of the £36bn which is to be recovered from the HS2 budget is to fund electrification of the main railway line in North Wales. However, as opposition spokesmen have pointed out, Wales is still owed at least £1bn as a consequence of the London-Birmingham section of HS2 being clearly an England-only project. Also, necessary though North Wales electrification is, there is still unfinished business in the electrification of the Great Western main line west of Cardiff, cut by Chris Grayling. 

There will also be quiet rejoicing by the fossil-fuel lobby as the £36bn which was all to be spent on a major electrification scheme will be redistributed to transport schemes generally, so that buses and road construction will benefit in addition to some rail improvements.