FORMER business secretary Peter Mandelson has said HS2 could be a 'monumental mistake', following last week's announcement that the projected cost is now £50 billion for the two phases, although this includes £7.5 billlion for the trains and a much larger contingency margin of £14 billion.
Writing in the Financial Times, Lord Mandelson said he had withdrawn his support for the scheme and that upgrades for the existing East and West Coast Main Lines should be 'actively considered' instead.
He explained: "In 2010, when the then Labour government decided to back HS2, we did so based on the best estimates of what it would involve. But these were almost entirely speculative. The decision was also partly politically driven.
"We did not imagine that the taxpayer would meet all the costs; HS2 looked a sure candidate to attract private funds. This is now far from clear. But, in truth, this was about the limit of our collective cabinet consideration. We were focusing on the coming electoral battle, not on the detailed facts and figures of an investment that did not present us with any immediate spending choices."
However, Jerry Blackett, chief executive of Birmingham Chamber of Commerce Group, responded by underlining the economic importance north of London and said that doing nothing was 'not an option'.
"The West Coast Main Line has been upgraded. Original estimates were that it would cost £2 billion; take six years and deliver 140mph [225km/h] trains," said Mr Blackett. He continued: "In fact it cost £9 billion, took nine years to complete and delivered 125mph trains [200km/h]. This only delivered one more train per hour between Birmingham and London and even this was at the expense of some local services. HS2 will deliver three new services per hour between the West Midlands and London each capable of carrying more than 1,000 passengers."
“In addition, HS2 also releases capacity on existing lines for more local, regional and long-distance services. Analysis in the West Midlands does make a compelling case for jobs and growth. But capacity is the key issue here and high speed costs only 10 per cent more than a conventional route.
“We do believe the economic benefits from connecting eight great cities will kick-start wealth creation outside London. We need to ensure our cities can compete with cities like Munich, Milan, Lyon and Barcelona, who are already ahead on their rail links.
"The long-term vision includes aviation. Birmingham Airport plus HS2 could deliver 70 million badly-needed air passenger movements per annum. This will bring investment to the Midlands as well as providing part of a national solution. We seem to have a habit in this country of procrastinating too much about major projects. Our motorway network and the Channel Tunnel were built only after long debate and opposition.”