18 Councils to Take HS2 to Court

The 51m group, an alliance of 18 councils, is due to launch a legal challenge against the controversial £34 billion HS2 plans the government has approved. Members of the local authorities opposed to the scheme have served a formal letter to Transport Secretary Justine Greening to warn her that they will mount a judicial review unless the decision to proceed with the high-speed rail line is reversed. Supporters of the project say that a legal challenge would only waste time and money.

Greening announced last month that the first phase of the HS2 project would go ahead, calling it the most substantial transport infrastructure plan since the motorways were built. The first phase will run between London and Birmingham and is due to be in operation by 2026. The project also calls for the rail line to be extended to northern England later, connecting Leeds and Manchester by 2032/33. A Department for Transport (DfT) spokesman said that the new rail line will provide more seats and connections for travellers, as well as prosperity and jobs for the whole nation. He added that the decision wasn’t “taken lightly or without great consideration”.

Speaking on behalf of 51m, Buckinghamshire County Council leader Councillor Martin Tett said that they are taking the stance with regret, as they prefer the government listened to the nation’s people, who have decisively rejected the largely expensive project. Instead, the government could have opted for a faster, cheaper and far better alternative, which the councils put forward. Communities in the north of England and the Midlands risk being bypassed and left to wither by HS2. Investment should be made across the country’s existing rail and road infrastructures to create jobs and growth when it’s needed – now.

51m vice chairman and London Borough of Hillingdon leader Councillor Ray Puddifoot says the consultation process for the project wasn’t fair and adequate in may aspects. Regular people, whose livelihoods and lives are going to be severely affected when the line is extended to Leeds and Manchester, weren’t given enough of a chance to have their say. The entire high-speed rail project represents very poor value for money for taxpayers. It’s right that the government’s decision to go ahead with the misguided scheme is challenged.

Stop HS2 campaigner Joe Rukin says that a judicial review will definitely happen. However, Campaign for High Speed Rail member Lucy James says that going through a judicial review is a huge waste of time and money. If local councils on the HS2 route contribute to the project’s bill, then this money could be directly coming from the taxpayer, in some cases. The DfT received and considered almost 60,000 submissions during the public consultation. Due to that, changes were implemented to the original plans and they are clearly visible in the finals. Rather than have a drawn-out court battle, she added, everyone should work together to make sure the best high-speed rail line possible is built.

The 51m group got its name from so many of its supporters saying the high-speed rail project will cost every parliamentary constituency £51 million. Here is a list of all the members.

• Buckinghamshire County Council
• Aylesbury Vale District Council
• Chiltern District Council
• South Bucks District Council
• Wycombe District Council
• London Borough of Hillingdon
• Oxfordshire County Council
• Cherwell District Council, Oxfordshire
• Lichfield District Council, Staffordshire
• South Northants District Council
• Warwick District Council
• North Warwickshire Borough Council
• Warwickshire County Council
• Stratford-on-Avon District Council, Warwickshire
• Leicestershire County Council
• Harborough District Council, Leicestershire
• Three Rivers District Council, Hertfordshire
• Coventry City Council