Losing HS2 and no deal ‘would lead to recession’

MPs’ dire prediction for West Midlands

THE threat hanging over the future of HS2 could trigger recession if combined with a no deal Brexit.

That was the catastrophic prediction this week from a coalition of Midland Labour MPs and the leadership of Birmingham City Council. The politicians recently joined northern leaders and businesses under the Connecting Britain campaign to press the Prime Minister to deliver HS2, as the Government reviews the future of the high speed line.

Birmingham MP Liam Byrne said: “If we lose HS2 it is a catastrophe for Birmingham and the West Midlands. It will tip us back into recession, cost us perhaps 100,000 new jobs.”

He added: “The Brexit asteroid is about to hit us in the West Midlands. Investment has almost stopped in our regional economy... the warehouses are full of parts, the last thing we need is the risk to HS2.”

THE cancellation of HS2 would be an act of self harm and a catastrophe, councillors and MPs have claimed – and could trigger a recession for the West Midlands if a no deal Brexit happens.

The prosperity of Birmingham and the West Midlands could be dramatically slowed if the combination of no deal and the loss of HS2 come to pass, warned the city’s Labour MPs and council leader Ian Ward this week.

“All of the cranes you see around Birmingham city centre, the record levels of inward investment, are on the assumption we will be at the heart of a high speed rail network for the UK,” said Cllr Ward.

“Reneging on HS2 and a no deal Brexit are the two major risks facing Birmingham and the West Midlands.”

He has provided evidence to the HS2 review, led by Douglas Oakervee, and continues to press the Government to confirm its support for the region, he added. He was joined at the Council House in Birmingham by Liam Byrne, Preet Gill and Richard Burden, representing the city’s Labour MPs, and Manuel Cortes, regional secretary of transport union TSSA, to spell out their concerns.

Mr Byrne, MP for Hodge Hill, said: “If we lose HS2 it is a catastrophe for Birmingham and the West Midlands. It will tip us back into recession, cost us perhaps 100,000 new jobs and crucially will cripple our attempts to become the first carbon zero region in the country, because we can’t decarbonise our transport system unless we take the freight off the clogged M42, M5, M6 and onto rail.

“The only way we create that capacity is with HS2, so it’s a real disaster if it is cancelled.”

He added: “The Brexit asteroid is about to hit us in the West Midlands.

“Investment has almost stopped in our regional economy at the moment, the warehouses are full of parts, the last thing we need is the risk to HS2.

“Businesses are investing in Birmingham ahead of their expectation that HS2 is going to come. If HS2 is in jeopardy, all that investment stops as well, just at the time when we need it most.”

MP Richard Burden (Lab, Northfield), voiced exasperation that he was even at the council for the meeting. “We should not be here. I love spending time in my home town of Birmingham and my constituency but we should be in Parliament – it’s crazy that Parliament is not in session when we are in a period of national crisls.

“But wherever we are, Birmingham MPs will continue to speak up anyway about what people need.”

Mr Cortes – whose organisation the Transport Salaried Staff Association represents 18,000 specialist transport workers including engineers, technical staff and managers – described HS2 as a ‘once in a lifetime opportunity’ to improve the rail network, upskill communities and meet the challenges of climate change.

“At the moment our railways are full, we can’t move freight from our roads onto our rail because we just don’t have the capacity to do so.

“HS2 is vital to resolving that. This is a huge project with a huge amount of public investment – it should be the catalyst for a new green manufacturing base,” he said.

The group of politicians joined northern leaders and businesses under the Connecting Britain campaign to press the Prime Minister to deliver HS2. The campaign brings together political, business and industry leaders to speak with one, powerful and united voice about the importance of HS2 for the UK economy.

The campaign has already been supported by mayors and council leaders across the North, and supporters say it is crucial to the re-balancing of the economy, and delivering on the Government’s commitments to ‘level up’ across the country.

The Oakervee review was commissioned by the Government and is analysing whether and how the project should continue.

It is considering a number of factors including the project’s benefits, impacts, affordability, efficiency, deliverability, scope and phasing.

The final report will be completed in the coming months and will inform the Government’s decisions on next steps for HS2.

It emerged earlier this month that the project could be delayed by up to seven years and run £26 billion over budget.

All of the cranes you around Birmingham are on the assumption we will be at the heart of HS2

Cllr Ian Ward