hs2
Lords ask HS2 consultants to justify their predictions for its economic benefit
21 October 2014
The House of Lords Economic Affairs Committee will take evidence from the consultants who assessed the economic case for HS2.
- Parliament TV: The Economic Case for HS2
- Inquiry: The Economic Case for HS2
- Select Committee on Economic Affairs
Witnesses
On Tuesday 21 October, at 3.35pm, Committee Room 2a, Palace of Westminster:
- Bridget Rosewell, Volterra Consultants
- Lewis Atter, KPMG
- Jim Steer, Steer Davis Gleave Consultants
4.30pm:
- Professor Stephen Glaister, Imperial College London
The first session will focus on:
- How robust are the findings in KPMG’s report for HS2 Ltd of a £15bn annual uplift for the UK economy by 2037 as a result of HS2
- How much shorter journey times are worth to business and whether the journey times stated take account of the length of time to get to the proposed station locations
- What other policies or investment will be needed to ensure regional cities benefit from HS2
- Whether alternative rail investment in the existing infrastructure would produce greater economic benefits
- The impact charging premium fares would have on passenger demand and the predictions made in the economic case.
At 4:30pm the Committee will hear from Professor Stephen Glaister from Imperial College London who has criticised the economic case the government have set out for HS2.
The Committee will question Mr Glaister on his views on whether there is a strong strategic and economic case for HS2, how reliable HS2’s demand forecasts are and whether he believed there is ‘symbiotic’ relationship between transport infrastructure and economic growth.