(Minister of State at the Department for
Transport): I am today publishing additional safeguarding
directions for the High Speed Two (HS2) railway for the West Midlands to Leeds
(known as the Phase 2b Eastern Leg) section of the HS2 route to reflect the latest design of
the HS2 railway.
Please note that the final design of the HS2 Phase 2b Eastern Leg and its
integration with Northern Powerhouse Rail will be determined by
the government’s integrated rail plan, that I aim to publish
early this year.
The latest safeguarding update includes a site east of Leeds. The
site required by the HS2 rail
project would support the potential integration between
HS2 and Northern Powerhouse
Rail.
The developer of the site has been made aware of the safeguarding
directions prior to their publication as has the local planning
authority, Leeds City Council.
By protecting the site now, the government guards against
potentially conflicting development, which could otherwise
disrupt the construction of HS2, as well as the risk of increased
costs of building the new railway.
This protects the public’s interest in spending taxpayer money in
a proportionate fashion. The government periodically reviews land
requirements needed for the project and updates the extent of
safeguarding accordingly.
It’s anticipated that the land requirements for Phase 2b of
HS2 for the Crewe to
Manchester (known as the Phase 2b Western Leg) section of the
route will be updated prior to the deposit of the relevant hybrid
bill.
