A NEW report from MPs has backed HS2, agreeing that it is needed to increase rail capacity, but it has also said its support is 'not unqualified'.
It is sounding a warning about the possibility of the project draining funding from other transport schemes, while urging the Government to explain the budget more effectively.
The report, from the House of Commons Transport Committee, also calls for a full assessment of the case for building from the north towards the south, instead of starting from London and concentrating on the first phase as far as Birmingham and Lichfield.
Louise Ellman, who chairs the committee, said: “We support the strategic case for HS2 published recently by the Government. Having looked at this, and at new research by KPMG that examined the project’s possible regional economic benefits, we remain confident that construction of a new high speed line is the only way to deliver the step change in capacity on the West Coast Main Line needed to accommodate long-term demand for both passengers and freight.
"This confirms the conclusions reached in 2011 when this committee looked closely at the original business case to build HS2 and backed those proposals.
“HS2 can also play a major role in promoting economic growth in the UK’s major city regions. We welcome the assurance given to us recently by Sir David Higgins, incoming chair of HS2, that he will re-examine the case for building the line from north-to-south, as well as from London northwards.”
Other conclusions in the report include the need for the Department for Transport to make the realities of the budget clearer. It says that the Government must 'emphasise more clearly to the public that the estimated cost of HS2 is £28 billion, not £50 billion, and that cost increases to date are largely due to the decision to undertake more tunnelling and other works to mitigate the impact of the project on people living near the route'.
The committee also wants the Government's development company HS2 Ltd to commission fresh work on the regional economic benefits of high speed rail, and says councils and Local Enterprise Partnerships should draw up economic development strategies which make the most of HS2 with the help of central Government. Further research should be carried out on service patterns when HS2 has started to release capacity on classic lines, and planners should give 'clear priority' to allowing trains from more areas to gain access to the high speed network.
Louise Ellman explained: "If we are to spread the benefits from HS2 as widely as possible, it is vital we improve links between the conventional and high speed networks and bring forward projects to speed up journey times on the conventional network.
“We would not accept a situation in which other vital transport projects were delayed because of HS2’s funding requirements and we remain concerned about how refinements -- for example to incorporate a stop for Heathrow into the plans for phase 1 -- may have an impact on the budget."
The publication of the report has coincided with a new initiative by the HS2 Growth Taskforce. Its members are meeting key figures from London today (13 December) as part of a series of visits around the country which are designed to ensure that the regions receive the best possible economic benefits of the project.
Commercial secretary to the Treasury and chair of the Taskforce Lord Deighton said: "HS2 is a nationally important project with the potential for huge local rewards if we get it right. In London there will be two HS2 stations meaning double the redevelopment opportunities, as well as thousands of jobs for Londoners through construction and ongoing private investment.
"But growth and regeneration will not just be handed on a plate and it is vital that businesses and leaders across London act now to harness the huge potential that the new north-south line offers.
"The Growth Taskforce is determined to see the benefits of HS2 stretch far and wide. That is why meeting with city and business leaders is so vital. By planning ahead and thinking big, London could start to benefit long before the first HS2 train arrives."