A survey conducted by You Gov in Birmingham has found that more than half of people in the city think HS2 will be a waste of money. Whilst 51% said HS2 though HS2 to be a bad use of public money, only 32% thought HS2 is a good investment for the area. In the poll conducted for LBC, more than a third thought the money going to HS2 would be better spent on the NHS.
Announcing the results as Conservative Party Conference takes place in Birmingham, LBC breakfast presenter Nick Ferrari said: “This is a considerable vote of no confidence from people who are supposed to be benefiting from such an extraordinary amount of money being spent.”
Responding to the survey, Stop HS2 Campaign Manager Joe Rukin said:
“For six years, Government have been trying to persuade everyone that HS2 will be a wonderful thing for the country, and nowhere more so than in Birmingham. But after all that time and effort, where HS2 has been shoved down the throats of Brummies as something which will be miraculous for them city, they still aren’t buying it. If the Government have failed to make a convincing case for HS2 to the people of Birmingham, you can just imagine how unpopular it must be in the rest of the country.”
“Regeneration around the proposed station site at Curzon Street stalled in 2010 as a result of HS2, as it has at the former LDV site in Washwood Heath, and the reality is HS2 has nothing to do with improving the economic performance of the city, it is all about getting more people in to London.”
Penny Gaines, Stop HS2 Chair, added:
“After just one day of the Conservative Party Conference, we’ve heard ministers say that HS2 is all about capacity and that they think it will be popular. But this poll shows that even in Birmingham, HS2 is an unpopular project.”
“As Iain Duncan-Smith said, there is a major risk in making Birmingham a commuter spot for London. It risks making house prices in Birmingham unaffordable for ordinary people.”
“In a fringe meeting yesterday, Andrew Jones, admitted that he thought HS2 was overdue for rebranding after he said it wasn’t about speed. But in reality, it’s overdue for cancellation.”
Teresa May has either not bothered to read up about HS2, which as PM she should have done, or more likely she has simply swallowed all the rubbish & lies put forward by its proponents. She talked about connectivity, it doesn’t! All very disappointing and it reflects very badly on her and her administration, but does she care?
The possibility of HS2 is due to lies, exaggerations, obfuscation and deliberate withholding of relevant information by the Govt.that would have undermined the HS2 case. It remains the case there is no independent support for this nonsense, Andrew Jones can say what he likes, but he clearly has either not bothered to look at the details or, more likely just carrying out Govt. policy,blindly. One wonders whether Cameron/Osborne signed up to a “deal” with the Chinese.