Via AGAHST:
Nearly two thirds of population opposed to money being spent on HS2
A YouGov public opinion poll has found that nearly two thirds of the public oppose money being spent on the planned £32 billion high speed rail link between London and Birmingham (HS2).
64 per cent of those surveyed in the poll (commissioned by groups opposed to HS2) believe that it is wrong to spend money on the proposed line at this time. In June this year 48 per cent of respondents to a YouGov poll for the Tax Payers’ Alliance were opposed to plans to fund what will be, per mile, the world’s most expensive railway.
Voter opposition
The latest poll found that 66 per cent of Labour’s general election voters are opposed to HS2, which was originally proposed by a Labour Government. 68 per cent of Liberal Democrat voters are against the line along with the majority of Conservative voters, 59 per cent.
North South DivideWhile supporters of HS2 believe that it will help close the North-South divide both regions are already united in their opposition to it. 62 per cent of Northern respondents; 64 per cent of those surveyed in London and 66 per cent of respondents in the South think that it is wrong to spend money on it at the current time.
Despite the Scottish Government’s enthusiasm for the line, 70 per cent of Scottish respondents are opposed to HS2, which will cost UK taxpayers £773 million in planning and consultants in the current Parliament alone. Perhaps most interestingly, respondents from the Midlands and Wales, the region that takes in Birmingham where the phase of the line will terminate, came out 64 per cent in favour of shelving spending on the project.
Can you really placed much credibility in a poll commissioned by opponents of the scheme?
The You Gov Poll asked the following question: “The government has announced plans to build a high speed rail link from London to Birmingham, Manchester and Leeds costing £32 billion. £773 million will be spent on the project before the next general election, but it has not yet been formally approved by parliament. Do you think it is right or wrong to spend this money on a new high speed rail link at the moment?”
How is this not credible?
(reply to John Yeatman) Yes. The public are constantly being fed information from organisations that are in favour of HS2 such as HS2 Ltd and Greengauge21, why should people with differing opinions automatically be discounted? Many of the volunteers that campaign against HS2 are highly educated individuals, they use their skills to produce credible data to support their valid arguments. Society would have truly broken down if we only listened to what supporters of proposed schemes had to offer, it is often the supporters that are set to profit if the go ahead is given. The case put forward by HS2 ltd for HS2 did not prove that the project would be in the National Interest, the poll carried out by action groups further highlights this failure.