Richard Wright, Sheffield Chamber Director – Policy & Representation, said:
For anybody who missed it the Prime Minister was in South Yorkshire last week with Jake Berry – the minister for the north. They both spoke eloquently about the need for investment in the north, the importance of mobility of labour and their commitment to Northern Powerhouse Rail. NEITHER mentioned HS2!! Maybe I’ve been around too long and become too cynical in my old age but I feel that this is telling and very depressing.
It comes in the same week as the Greater London Conservatives called for the scrapping of HS2 and for the money to be ploughed into Crossrail 2. London has recently invested £30bn in the extension to the Jubilee Line, Thameslink extension and Crossrail 1. They’ve had new carriages for Thameslink and other lines, they’ve had billions invested in Kings Cross and other stations, they already have HS1, yet they advise that a strategic and significant investment that can cause a step change in the North should be scrapped so they can have another £32bn for Crossrail 2!!
We have waited years for any significant investment in the north. Our rail system is chronically overcrowded and our rolling stock is diabolical. Our air quality is illegal on some of our stations and roads. The combined investments of HS2 and Northern Powerhouse rail give us real hope for the future. Yet some are now advocating for the rich to get richer and the poor to get poorer. The north can drive up its productivity and be a net contributor to the UK economy but it needs investment to do it and we should not have to choose between different projects that either improve north-south or east-west. WE NEED BOTH!!
The Government is doing a review of HS2 and Doug Oakervee is due to give an interim report in about two weeks. Sheffield Chamber has supported our regional mayor in meetings with the Review panel, and our regional written submission. We have worked with all the major city chambers across the north in making our support for HS2 very clear. We have input into the submission by the British Chambers of Commerce. In all cases the facts show that the return on investment for HS2 is excellent. The Eastern leg actually gives the best return because it links 5 cities together and, in combination with NPR and more localised investments, can transform the north as a place to invest in and work.
Investment in our current network will just not give the capacity we need. The disruption whilst any work was done on our existing lines would be catastrophic. Without the investment in new capacity we cannot get freight off the roads and deliver the widespread electrification which would see the step change we require in our air quality. In reality not committing to HS2 would consign the north to sitting there with our begging bowl for generations to come, waiting for scraps from the London/South East table.
All the rhetoric about re-balancing our national economy that the conservatives have been saying for so long will be exposed for what it really is – election noise! Prove it isn’t Prime Minister – commit to HS2 and Northern Powerhouse Rail!
