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Oxfordshire County Council is 16th local authority to join 51m to fight HS2


Via 51m.co.uk: Oxfordshire County Council’s decision to join forces with the 51m group now brings to 16 the number of local authorities working collaboratively to oppose the Government’s £32 billion high speed rail project, HS2. Martin Tett, leader of Buckinghamshire County Council and chairman of 51m said: “I’m delighted that Oxfordshire has joined the growing ranks of local authorities who have reviewed, challenged and now oppose this immensely expensive scheme.

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Six days left to respond to the HS2 consultation


THERE are just six days for residents to say ‘no’ to High Speed 2. But an action group have assured Buckinghamshire householders help is at hand to answer the Government’s public consultation. July 29 is the cut off point to respond to the questions. via Just six days to say no to HS2 (From Bucks Free Press). See also the IEA’s report, High Speed 2: the next government project disaster? For the consultation, please see highspeedrail.dft.gov.uk.  I have previously stated my opposition […]

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An extra £6-9bn for HS2?


It emerged today that the cost of a new tube line and so on to cope with passenger dispersal from Euston once HS2 is running north of Birmingham would be £6-9bn. That is not included in the business plan or the cost benefit analysis. I’m glad I asked the question. As was pointed out today, there is much at stake for the generations which follow us. Amid the casual flinging around, or indeed omission of, so much money taken from […]

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Matthew Sinclair: Why are the Government taxing ordinary motorists to pay for a rich man’s high-speed train?


Via ConservativeHome’s Platform: Matthew Sinclair: Why are the Government taxing ordinary motorists to pay for a rich man’s high-speed train? This isn’t about North vs. South. The priority should be improving links into cities in the North and South, and between Northern cities. We should be trying to deliver affordable and less crowded commuter routes instead of pouring money into making a fast intercity service somewhat faster. Even the Government’s figures show they expect most jobs to be created in […]

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Bucks HS2 Summit


I’ll be off to the Bucks HS2 summit in Aylesbury in a moment. As a member of the Transport Committee, I am delighted that we are to conduct an inquiry into the strategic case for High Speed Rail. The Transport Committee has decided to undertake an inquiry into the strategic case for High Speed Rail (the HSR programme). The Committee will focus on the principal arguments for and against High Speed Rail. The Committee is not intending to examine the precise […]

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China: Off the rails? | The Economist


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The Economist reports China: Off the rails? Public support for high-speed trains is muted. The trains may reach 350km per hour but fares are proportionately eye-watering. That is all right for well-heeled travellers, happy to have an alternative to flying. But tens of millions of poor migrants who work far afield and flock home for the Chinese new year are being priced out the rail market and have to go by bus (the number of bus journeys is soaring). So, the […]

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Matthew Sinclair: Beware of multi-billion pound projects bearing jobs


On HS2 as a job creation scheme: 40,000 jobs from a £17 billion project means that each job is costing well over £400,000.  By contrast, in the wider economy the capital stock is about £3.2 trillion and that supports over 30 million jobs; just over £100,000 a job.  In other words, every job created by high speed rail comes at a cost of four jobs in the wider economy. via ConservativeHome’s Platform: Matthew Sinclair: Beware of multi-billion pound projects bearing […]

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HS2 Consultation launched


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The consultation on HS2 has been announced today and it is open for your feedback.  You can access the consultation website here.  The Executive Summary can be found here; for the full document please click here. HS2 is a sore issue in the Chilterns, and rightly so.  However, High Speed Rail has further repercussions, including philosophical and economic questions about the future direction of the country. My view on HS2 was laid out during the Westminster Hall debate I called last […]

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Atlas Shrugged on the big screen


As I have reported before, there’s much in Ayn Rand’s writing that I do not like: As an articulation of what goes wrong when government and other coercive institutions intervene in the economy and in society, it is a masterpiece. As an articulation of the timeless morals which have sustained human society, it leaves something to be desired: magnanimity. Ironically, Aristotle, who made magnanimity “the crowning virtue”, was the only philosopher to whom Rand would acknowledge a philosophical debt: it […]

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Adjournment debate on HS2 today


THE Government’s High Speed 2 plans were today opposed by Wycombe MP Steve Baker in the Houses of Parliament. Tory MP Mr Baker personally called a 90 minute debate this morning, where Transport Minister Theresa Villiers was summoned. Read the full coverage in the BFP here. a video of the debate is available here. I am grateful to the Minister and colleagues for their participation.

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