High Speed Rail (Crewe
- Manchester) Bill (Carry-over)
Motion made and question proposed
That the following provisions shall apply in respect of the High
Speed Rail (Crewe – Manchester) Bill:
(1) Further proceedings on the Bill shall be suspended from the
day on which this Session of Parliament ends until the next
Session of Parliament.
(2) If a Bill is presented in the next Session in the same terms
as the Bill when it was presented in this Session–
(a) the Bill so presented shall be ordered to be printed and
shall be deemed to have been read the first time; and
(b) the Standing Orders and practice of the House applicable to
the Bill, so far as complied with or dispensed with in this
Session, shall be deemed to have been complied with or (as the
case may be) dispensed with in the next Session.
That these Orders be Standing Orders of the House.—(.)
8.31pm
(Slough) (Lab)
The Labour party understands the need to carry over this Bill to
the next Session of Parliament, and the narrow technical reasons
for doing so. I therefore will not detain the House for long on a
Bill that has yet even to have its Second Reading. Labour
welcomes the much-needed extension of High Speed 2, and has long
supported HS2 being built in full, as that will help to address
the severe capacity constraints on our rail network, and improve
connections between cities in the midlands and the north. Labour
looks forward to making its arguments during the passage of the
Bill through Parliament about value for money for UK taxpayers,
and we will fight to ensure that working people across our
country see the benefits from this project in jobs and
opportunities. We cannot accept a situation where just one
UK-based firm was shortlisted for £2.5 billion-worth of contracts
for track and tunnel systems for HS2. We also know that the
decision to scrap the eastern leg was a betrayal of promises made
to communities, and will leave the north in the slow lane for
decades to come. Promises made must be kept, and Labour will
stand up for our communities and demand that the Government
deliver the northern rail investment that they promised.
8.32pm
(Stone) (Con)
The Minister knows well my continued opposition to HS2 so this is
not unusual, but I have some specific points to make about the
phase 2 Bill. It contains proposals for a totally unnecessary
railhead and separate infrastructure maintenance base at Ashley,
which will cause immense damage to the constituency of my right
hon. Friend the Member for Tatton (), who is in her place today.
She has discussed the merits of the objections to phase 2b of HS2
with my constituents who are injuriously affected. Those
facilities, together with another proposed arrangement at the
Crewe rolling stock depot, will, I believe, waste an estimated
£475 million of taxpayers’ money. With a further £171 million of
savings to be made by the use of a Transport and Works Act order
on phase 2, the Minister will know that I and parliamentary
colleagues are calling for less than half the total of the £650
million saved to be directed towards the reopening of eight miles
of the former North Staffordshire railway. Other colleagues come
from the vicinity of Stoke-on-Trent and neighbouring
constituencies.
Such a move has the potential to transform west-to-east rail
connectivity across the north, which so many people are calling
for, and provide a massive economic boost to north Staffordshire
to achieve our levelling-up objectives. I therefore call on the
Minister to amend the phase 2 Bill and remove the proposals for
Ashley when it returns to the House. I greatly look forward to
further discussions taking place between my constituents, the
Minister’s officials and appointed rail experts on how we can
make required improvements to the phase 2a proposals as soon as
possible.
8.34pm
(Denton and Reddish)
(Lab)
I rise not to detain the House for any undue period but to place
on the record an issue hidden away in the Bill’s detail that will
severely affect my constituents’ transport opportunities. I do
not know whether the Minister is aware of it—I have raised it at
Transport questions and believe that we have a meeting scheduled
after the local elections to discuss it—but, as we are talking
about carrying over the Bill, I want to place it on the record so
that the Minister can understand the issue at stake affecting my
constituency and, hopefully, it can be resolved before Second
Reading. The proposals that I will put to him are not
insurmountable, especially when we consider the scale of the High
Speed 2 project from Crewe to Manchester and the public
expenditure that that will involve.
The Minister will know that there will be a great deal of work
outside Manchester Piccadilly station and in its surroundings.
The construction work to bring the high-speed rail line into the
new station at Piccadilly will massively disrupt the streets and
the environment around the current station, and that has an
implication for the Manchester Metrolink service from Manchester
Piccadilly through my constituency to Ashton-under-Lyme. The line
to Ashton—the only Metrolink line that goes through Manchester
Piccadilly—will have to be severed for the period of the
construction work around Piccadilly station, which will result in
the line being mothballed—[Interruption.] I realise, Mr Deputy
Speaker, that I am straying on to Second Reading territory, but I
want to get the solution on the record before the Bill is read a
Second time. That will involve the line being mothballed and a
bus replacement service put in place, which is not acceptable to
my constituents.
What we need is a depot building on Ashton Moss where the trams
can be parked overnight and so that the tram service between
Ashton and New Islington can be retained. That is a simple,
constructive solution with the support of my right hon. Friend
the Member for Ashton-under-Lyne () and my hon. Friend the
Member for Manchester Central () which will keep the tram line
running. I hope that the Minister will look favourably on
that.
Mr Deputy Speaker ( )
I was hugely generous there, Mr Gwynne.
Thank you.
8.37pm
(Tatton) (Con)
I rise to oppose the carry-over motion. This is a highly
contentious Bill, particularly for my constituents in Tatton.
While I know that you would not allow me to get into why I oppose
the Bill, Mr Deputy Speaker, there are reasons why it should not
be carried over, and I need to put them on the record.
Much has changed since the Bill’s genesis, and two things in
particular. First, rail travel between cities has not returned to
pre-covid levels or even close. That indicates even to those who
agreed with the project in the first place that this expensive
white elephant is no longer needed. Secondly, the cost of HS2 had
continued to rise at an eye-watering rate, and that was before we
saw the current huge rates of inflation, which will put it up
further. Those are vital areas of contention where there has been
a material change since the Bill started its passage, so it is
vital that the House of Commons starts the process of the Bill
afresh to see whether the project still commands its support.
Mr Deputy Speaker
Thank you. Does the Minister wish to respond to those bits that
related to the carry-over?
8.39pm
The Minister of State, Department for Transport ()
Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker. May I first say that my hon. Friend
the Member for Stone ( ) continues to be true
champion for his constituents? I look forward to visiting his
constituency soon. My officials will continue to work with many
local campaigners in his area to ensure we find the best possible
way forward and the best possible solution for both taxpayers and
local residents.
The hon. Member for Denton and Reddish () raises Metrolink. As he
will, I am sure, recall, it is an issue I am well aware of
because I worked in Droylsden for many years and the Metrolink
ran outside my office. I look forward to again meeting him, and
continuing to work with him and local campaigners to ensure we
get the right solution as the Bill progresses.
My right hon. Friend the Member for Tatton () raises many issues relating
to the business case and cost of HS2. I am sure they will be
debated heavily on Second Reading.
I welcome the continuing support for the Bill by the shadow
Minister, the hon. Member for Slough (Mr Dhesi). I will just say
that, as he will know, 2,400 UK registered businesses have now
won work on the HS2 programme, with over 22,000 people employed.
This is a project delivering significant UK jobs.
The Bill is, of course, yet to have its Second Reading. As it is
a hybrid Bill, there are procedures that need to be completed
before that can happen. I look forward to the debate on the
scheme continuing properly at that juncture, but for now it
should be carried over. The consultation on the Bill’s
environmental statement has just closed. The responses are being
assessed by Parliament’s independent assessor, who will provide a
report ahead of the Second Reading debate. There is always a
longer delay between the First Reading and Second Reading of
hybrid Bills to allow that necessary procedure to be completed,
but Second Reading is now anticipated for late June or early
July.
Question put and agreed to.
