Alliance of councils threatens ministers with JR over HS2 high-speed rail link

An alliance of local authorities has warned ministers that it will pursue a judicial review challenge over the government’s decision to proceed with the high-speed rail project HS2.

Transport Secretary Justine Greening said on 10 January that the government would back the £16bn scheme, albeit on a revised basis.

The first phase of the scheme is expected to cut journey times between London and Birmingham to 49 minutes. A second phase would extend the link to Manchester and Leeds. The stages would be completed by 2026 and 2032/3 respectively.

But in a letter to Greening, the 51m group has called for the decision to be rescinded.

51m, which has 19 local authority members, also gave notice of a potential judicial review challenge. The grounds for the challenge are expected to include inadequate consultation.

The alliance also argues that the case put forward by the Department for Transport and HS2 Ltd represents poor value for money.

51m claims its alternative to HS2 would double the capacity of the current West Coast Mainline while costing less than 10% of HS2’s cost. The authorities also argue that it would provide extra capacity much sooner and with less disruption.

Cllr MartinTett, Leader of Buckinghamshire County Council and spokesman for 51m, said: “We are taking this stance with regret. We would far rather that the Government had listened to the people of this country who have decisively rejected this massively expensive project and instead opted for the far better, cheaper and more quickly delivered alternative put forward by 51m. Communities in the Midlands and the north of England risk being bypassed and left to decline by HS2.

“We should be investing in our existing rail and road infrastructure across the entire country to bring jobs and growth now when it is needed.”

Cllr Ray Puddifoot, Vice-Chairman of 51m and Leader of the London Borough of Hillingdon, said: “The consultation process was unfair and inadequate in many respects. Ordinary people whose lives and livelihoods will be severely affected between Birmingham and Manchester and Leeds were not even given an adequate chance to have their say.

“The whole project represents extremely poor value for money for the hard pressed UK taxpayer and it is right that we challenge the Government’s decision to progress with this misguided scheme.”