House of Commons Written Answers 10 June 2014
Transport: High Speed 2 Railway Line
Mrs Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the costs to date has been of the preparation work for the connection of High Speed 2 to High Speed 1. [199307]
Mr Goodwill: In response to the HS2 Plus report by Sir David Higgins, the Secretary of State for Transport, my right hon. Friend the Member for Derbyshire Dales (Mr McLoughlin), has decided to remove the HS1-HS2 link from the Phase One Hybrid Bill. The proposed link required too many compromises in terms of impacts on freight, passengers and the community in Camden.
We believe there is a good strategic case for links to the continent but we need to select the right long term answer. The Secretary of State has therefore asked HS2 Ltd and Network Rail to consider how to improve connections from HS2 and the existing rail network to the Continent. We are currently developing the scope of the proposed study, which will explore options that will stand the test of time. As a result, at this stage no significant costs have been incurred in relation to the study.
Transport: Secondment
Mrs Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many people working in (a) HS2 Ltd and (b) his Department are (i) on secondment, (ii) on loan and (iii) paid for by another company; and in each case what the parent company or organisation of such people was. [199305]
Mr Goodwill: The number of people seconded and loaned to my whole Department and HS2 Ltd are set out in the following tables.
| HS2 Ltd | ||
| Parent company/organisation | Number of secondees | Unpaid1 |
| 1 Payments are invoiced to HS2 Ltd. | ||
| DFT | ||
| Total | ||
The Department does not hold information centrally on the parent company or organisation where they have come from.
House of Commons Written Answers 12 June 2014
Transport: High Speed 2 Railway Line [12 June 2014]
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Mr O’Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how he expects High Speed 2 to reduce overcrowding at London Waterloo. [199332]
Mr Goodwill: High Speed 2 is not intended to reduce overcrowding at London Waterloo, as it has been designed as a link between London Euston, Birmingham, Leeds and Manchester.
The 2012 Rail Investment Strategy (HLOS) has asked the industry to provide additional peak capacity for 9,700 extra passengers into Waterloo by 2019 and has provided funding for Network Rail to expand Waterloo and other stations. Network Rail and South West Trains have set out plans to lengthen peak trains and South West Trains is now in discussions with the Department for Transport.
Mr O’Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate he has made of the excess capacity on peak High Speed 2 services. [199333]
Mr Goodwill: The HS2 Economic Case published in October 2013 indicates that the average all-day load factor for HS2 services in 2036 for the full network is expected to be 41%. Peak period load factors are expected to be significantly higher.
Mr O’Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will publish an updated cost benefit analysis for High Speed 2 in light of the decision not to link High Speed 2 with High Speed 1 and Eurostar services. [199334]
Mr Goodwill: We will continue to revise and update the economic case for HS2 as new project milestones are reached, such as decisions on the preferred route for Phase 2, to ensure it is based on the best available evidence and latest understanding of the project, including taking account of the decision to remove the existing proposals for the HS1-HS2 link from the scheme….
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Mrs Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many people have accessed the HS2 Ltd complaints procedure set out in the HS2 Residents’ Charter of April 2014; what the details are of each complaint; what the outcome is of each complaint; and what complaints are outstanding. [199644]
Mr Goodwill: The complaints procedure, along with other aspects of the Residents’ Charter for HS2, is currently being developed and further information will be published in due course.
Mrs Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the average time taken to respond by HS2 Ltd to property related compensation enquiries is; and what the longest time taken to respond to such an enquiry has been. [199645]
Mr Goodwill: HS2 Ltd aims to respond to all inquiries as soon as possible and within a maximum of 20 working days.
Performance against this standard was 93% for April 2013 to March 2014.
A high proportion of these inquiries relate to property compensation but HS2 Ltd does not compile separate performance data for different inquiry types.
Mrs Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much his Department has paid to Carter Jonas for work in connection with High Speed 2 to date; and what those payments were for. [199666]
Mr Goodwill: £86,851.07 (including VAT) has been paid to Carter Jonas by HS2 Ltd, from 2009 to May 2014.
These payments relate to the following activities:
- attending property consultations in the capacity of property experts
- providing valuations of properties
- attending properties on the day of completion to facilitate handover
- acting on behalf of clients in receipt of payments regarding HS2 Ltd access to land and environmental surveys
- completing client Land Interest Questionnaires
- undertaking Farm Impact Assessments