When it comes to spending 50 billion whose advice are you going to follow? www.hs2actionalliance.org 4pager.indd 1 25/09/2013 07:29 I am a passionate supporter of HS2 as an engine for growth. Put the likes of simply we cannot afford not to build HS2. Pete Waterman or

The problem isn’t Better alternatives the middle of the Our research shows the line, it’s the ends — could massively Government is HS2 is a very expensive, it just doesn’t link backing the wrong horse. up properly with the increase capacity very environmentally Chris Stokes, Former Director, damaging, very New Economics Foundation existing transport Strategic Rail Authority network. badly-thought-through Lord Berkeley, Chairman, HS2 is a huge mistake. The fact transport project Rail Freight Group is, it is a crazy grandiose vanity project which doesnt stack up John Whitelegg, Green Party economically at all Lord Lawson The Department for Transport has yet to present a convincing strategic case We’re not a big fan of HS2. There’s for High Speed 2. The Department has very little economic benefit to it. been making huge spending decisions I wouldn’t spend that amount of money on the basis of fragile numbers, out-of- on it. date data and assumptions which do Nigel Wilson, Chief Executive, Legal & General Group plc not reflect real life. House of Commons Public Accounts Committee Only benefits the HS2 originated from a flawed political richest with a confection before the (last) election massive ongoing I remain unconvinced Archie Norman, Chairman ITV plc subsidy Sustainable Development that this is the Claims of substantial carbon reduction Commission best way for the don’t stand up House of CommonsTransport Select Committee government to ‘It is now clear that spend money.

Businesses up and down Cameron must scrap LSE & HS2 StrategicProfessor Challenge Overman, Panel the country know value for HS2 and scrap it now.’ money when they see it, Lord Ashcroft and our research shows that they don’t see it in the If I were prime minister I would not spend the cash on this, I’d spend it on improving the existing government’s case for HS2 railways and transport infrastructure Institute of Directors Professor Tony Travers, London School of Economics

4pager.indd 2 25/09/2013 07:29 This lossmaking project fails We need to examine why we the commercial test, while need a 400 kph railway. In my standard cost-benefit analy- view the UK doesn’t need it. HS2 is crazy….it will not sis shows it to be extremely even link with Heathrow, poor value for money. Crossrail or the continent All the arguments which are Richard Wellings, via St Pancras. It will not used to support the idea have Institute of Economic Affairs even go to Birmingham New had to be retrofitted after the Street. decision to proceed, which is HS2 Threatens Simon Jenkins, The Guardian why none of them fit.” important wildlife sites Rob Holden, Chief Executive, HS1 The Wildlife Trusts

33 ancient woods are under threat from the whole route with Scotland has many a further 34 at risk within 200m of the line. infrastructure projects Woodland Trust worth investing in but HS2 Our research shows the should not be given the Britain still has time to Government is time of day backing the wrong horse. ditch this grand infrastructure project— Brian Monteith, The Scotsman New Economics Foundation and should. The Economist

All the parties — especially Labour — should Advocates for HS2 have had five years to make think twice before binding themselves their case. They have failed. If it goes ahead, it will irrevocably to HS2. It is not all it seems dominate the UK’s investment programme for the and has the potential to end up a mistake, next two decades. It would be better if it did not. damaging in particular to those people that it Professor John Kay, London School of Economics was intended to help. HS2 runs the risk of Lord Mandelson We should be spending to create substantially draining jobs in our cities not on making it the railways of money vital for investment faster to go to London to get jobs Pretending there is a good over the next 30 years. Phil Redmond, Screenwriter social economic case for Tim Montgomerie, The Times HS2 is spurious. Failing to It’s also unclear how HS2 will "We agree with need for key in- consider alternative ways transform regional economies by frastructure spending, but… it is to spend £50 billion is an delivering jobs time for the government to look abrogation of duty. and growth at a thousand smaller projects Amysas Morse, Margaret Hodge MP, Chair House of instead of… one grand folly” Head of National Audit Office Commons Public Accounts Committee Simon Walker, Director General, Institute of Directors

HS2 is a disaster To commit ourselves to Adam Smith Institute spending so much on a project that rules out any “Unfortunately the way that HS2 is other major schemes seems being done is an engineering solution foolish. And the costs are not looking for a problem. If it carries on yet nailed down. The facts it won’t properly integrate with the have changed. The case for HS2 was just about stateable railway system.” in 2010. I don’t believe Tony Collins, Chief Executive Virgin Trains it is today. Alistiar Darling MP

4pager.indd 3 25/09/2013 07:30 HS2: A Bad Deal For Britain

Despite Pete Waterman’s, backing the questions about a new high speed rail line to connect London, the West Midlands, Leeds and Manchester just won’t go away. HS2AA believe there are five key reasons why HS2 is a bad deal for Britain.

1. HS2’s Costs Are Rising Yet Its Benefits Are Exaggerated

• Originally estimated at £30 billion in 2010 it is now officially costed at £50 billion, with the Financial Times reporting the Treasury predict the bill for HS2 will end up at £73 billion. • HS2’s benefits, by contrast, remain stubbornly weak with its business case dependent on the outdated assumption people don’t work on trains, over optimistic demand forecasts, ignoring price competition and declining trends in business travel. Adjust these assumptions and HS2’s return is more like 50p for every £1 of public money invested.

2. HS2 is the wrong priority for Britain

• HS2 is an investment in obsolescence. The UK developed a fast intercity rail network before others in Western Europe and still tops the league for shortest times between its capital and five biggest cities. • HS2 has a huge opportunity cost-the funds to be devoted to this scheme would be sufficient to transform our existing transport infrastructure.

3. HS2 is not needed for rail capacity reasons – and there are better alternatives.

• Official claims that HS2 is needed to tackle capacity shortfalls on the West Coast Main Line don’t stack up. The Government’s own figures show intercity trains into Euston are only half full even at peak times. And all the other intercity routes coming into London (except HS1) are far busier in the peak. • Improving the existing West Coast Mainline is a more cost effective and risk-free way to meet future rail capacity needs, which can be rolled out faster, benefit more people, and cost a fraction of HS2. Even Network Rail accept the alternative (of lengthening trains, reducing first class and resolving 3 pinchpoints on the Line) is feasible

4. HS2 won’t solve the North/South divide or rebalance our economy.

• The evidence from numerous experts all point to London benefitting most. It creates few jobs and even the regeneration around stations is likely to just be jobs relocated from the surrounding areas. • HS2 is literally useless for journeys between northern cities-people wishing to travel between Liverpool, Leeds, Manchester or Newcastle wont be able to use HS2. HS2’s route design is all about moving people to London.

5. HS2 is highly damaging to our environment

• Constructing a railway line with a landtake equivalent to a four-lane motorway will have a devastating effect on the natural environment. • Over 130 wildlife sites on the first stage alone will be directly affected by HS2, including 10 Sites of Special Scientific Interest, an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and 33 ancient woodlands. • HS2 will grow, not help reduce our carbon emissions-its own forecasts predict just 3% of its customers will transfer from the air and 6% from the car with 24% being wholly new journeys.

www.hs2actionalliance.org Making The Powerful Case Against HS2

4pager.indd 4 25/09/2013 07:30