HIGH-SPEED RAIL LINK

Early day motion 551, tabled 22 January 2009 by Greg Mulholland (Liberal Democrat). Signed by 18 members.

That this House welcomes the belated announcement from the Government of a new, high-speed rail link connecting London and the West Midlands; believes however that this line should not stop at the Midlands but should link key regional hubs in the north of England, particularly Leeds, Sheffield and Manchester with London; believes that the new line should take the form of a Y shape which would split at Birmingham and have two linking branches, one to Leeds via Sheffield and one to Manchester, respectively; further recognises the economic benefit of connecting these key regional hubs direct with London and the beneficial impact this service would have for the environment in providing a viable alternative to air travel; recommends that the Government begins work on a feasibility study as soon as possible; and further believes that in the future as a subsequent phase these east and west coast high-speed rail branches could be extended beyond these cities to the north of England and Scotland.

Signatures by party: Labour 9, Liberal Democrat 7, Conservative 1, Social Democratic and Labour Party 1.