Council leaders representing the ten largest cities outside London have today urged prime minister to expedite the delivery of the first and second phases of the High Speed 2 (HS2) rail project.
A signed declaration sent to Number 10 Downing Street calling for the creation of a full high-speed network was sent to coincide with today’s Core Cities summit, which brings together 150 national and international figures to debate the advancement of the devolution agenda.
The declaration seeks cross-party consensus in passing legislation for Phase 1 and Phase 2 of the Hybrid Bill before Parliament and exploratory talks on the prospects for expanding a network to extend HS2 to all the UK’s major cities.
To mark the first such gathering in four years, the English Core Cities – Birmingham, Bristol, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle, Nottingham and Sheffield - together with Scottish cities Edinburgh and Glasgow, have issued a prospectus for growth.
It predicts that by 2030, before HS2 is completed, the Core Cities could help create 1.16 million new jobs and boost the economy by £222bn and in so doing become financially independent of Government.
Sir Richard Leese, leader of Manchester City Council, and chair of the Core Cities group said: ‘Our aim is for all the Core Cities to outperform the national economy, and to become financially self-sustaining before the completion of High Speed 2.;
Cllr Sir Albert Bore, leader of Birmingham City Council and Core Cities cabinet member for transport said HS2 was an essential step toward a 21st century high-speed rail network.
‘Upgrades will not don and will instead cause years of delays and economic damage not just for cities but for the UK as a whole,’ he said.
Sir Albert added the investment was the same as the annual sum spent on Crossrail in London and would connect all the UK’s cities as an economic powerhouse.
