Chesterfield council leader and town’s MP's disappointment after HS2 rail scheme’s northern leg is scrapped

The multi-billion pound HS2 scheme was originally rolled-out as a new zero-carbon, high-speed railway that would serve as a levelling-up project for the north and south running between London, the Midlands and the north of England.

However, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced on Wednesday, October 4, that his Conservative Government was scrapping the line north of Birmingham – effectively getting rid of the leg to Manchester and the eastern leg to East Midlands Parkway.

Councillor Tricia Gilby, leader of Labour-led Chesterfield Borough Council, said: “We are very disappointed with the Government’s announcement to cancel HS2 north of Birmingham.

“Building HS2 East in full would have been transformational for our borough, creating jobs, driving investment, and freeing up capacity on the Midland Main Line to create a more dependable local rail service.”

However, Mr Sunak has also announced further plans to reinvest an originally earmarked £36.5bn for the HS2 scheme into other transport projects under a Network North plan for rail lines, roads and tramlines.

In addition, the Government announced that it will no longer be “safeguarding” land beyond the East Midlands for any future possible expansion of HS2 including Derbyshire, Cheshire, Lancashire, Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire, Staffordshire, Warwickshire and Yorkshire – removing any prospect of ever expanding HS2 to the north in the future.

Cllr Gilby added: “As with all major Government announcements we are still working through the detail. We are urgently seeking further information on the proposed transport investment following this announcement, so that we can gain an understanding of when our residents might start to benefit from any improvements.”

Both Cllr Gilby and Chesterfield MP Toby Perkins had initially been saddened in November, 2021, when the original plans between the East Midlands and Leeds – which were to see HS2 go through Chesterfield, Sheffield and Leeds – were also scrapped and replaced with a proposed route stopping at an East Midlands hub near Nottingham which has also now been scrapped.

Chesterfield Labour MP Toby Perkins said: “The PM’s decision to abandon the billions already spent on HS2 and leave the UK with Victorian train infrastructure is probably the most appalling Prime Ministerial decision in my time in politics.

“It is a betrayal of not only our community but of the promises made in the Conservative Party manifesto. Rishi Sunak is our Prime Minister without winning – whether a General election or a leadership election – and so he should tread very carefully before breaching a commitment that enjoyed cross-party support through six Prime Ministers over 15 years.”

Properties bought under the HS2 scheme in the north to allow for the original development through that region will also no longer be required and will be sold on, according to the Government, after its decision to release any land beyond the East Midlands that had been preserved for the HS2 scheme despite the upheaval for property and landowners.

However, the Government has also now announced its £36.5bn Network North plan and it recently revealed that its aims to reopen the former Barrow Hill railway line, in Derbyshire, for passengers further boosting the Chesterfield and Staveley area’s regeneration plans after this route was terminated in the 1960s.

But Mr Perkins added: “To receive the news that the Barrow Hill Line was being offered as a replacement is a sick joke.

“HS2 was this country’s only serious attempt at world class rail linking the north and south, already years behind many of our international competitors.

“It’s cancellation isn’t just hugely wasteful but a sign of a Government that isn’t serious about facing the long term challenges that face us.

“If [Rishi] Sunak not only abandons this pledge but takes action to prevent any future Government being able to bring it forward, it will be the biggest act of political vandalism I can remember.

“This proves more than anything else that our country needs a General Election before this hapless Government does any more damage.”

The original HS2 scheme before it was altered to exclude Chesterfield, Sheffield and Leeds in November, 2021, had been a key part of Chesterfield’s plans to regenerate its railway station area and the eastern leg would have served Chesterfield along with plans to build a train maintenance depot at Staveley to benefit Derbyshire.

Local authorities had hoped HS2’s northern development would have supported jobs, regeneration, and economic prosperity before the Government’s announcement that the whole northern route plan is to be scrapped.

Cllr Gilby said “”We are still awaiting clarification about land safeguarded for HS2 in our borough, particularly in relation to the proposed HS2 Infrastructure Maintenance Depot at Staveley, and when restrictions will be lifted to allow alternative investment schemes to be explored.

“The regeneration of the Chesterfield Railway Station area is a key priority for us and was always designed so it could progress independently.

“However, clearly the plans would have capitalised on the opportunities offered to us by the HS2 East proposals, but they must now go ahead in their own right as part of our wider regeneration of the town centre.”

The remaining HS2 high-speed line will now finish in Birmingham and not Manchester after costs reportedly doubled and travelling patterns are said to have changed following the Covid-19 pandemic and the Government hopes the altered scheme will be completed between 2029 and 2033.

HS2 was originally outlined in 2009 and work on phase one of the scheme started in 2017 to connect London and Birmingham.

The scheme first came with an estimated cost of about £33bn but the Government estimated in 2019 that this had jumped to about £71bn including the Birimingham to Manchester leg and some reported estimates say the overall budget has now jumped to around three times its initial estimate following inflation.

A Manchester and Leeds route, which represented Phase 3 of the HS2 scheme, was cancelled in November, 2021, and now Phase 2, between Birmingham and Manchester, has also been cancelled.

The Government has stated that its new Network North plan still aims to boost connections between the region’s east and west and the Prime Minister has stated that the north of England will get around £20bn as part of of the overall new scheme as well as £12bn to support links between Liverpool and Manchester.

Cllr Gilby said Chesterfield Borough Council is still seeking clarity on what alternative investment may be coming to the Chesterfield borough.

NE Derbyshire District Council stated that it did not wish to comment on the Government’s decision to scrap the northern leg of HS2 beyond the East Midlands.

Conservative-controlled Derbyshire County Council and Labour-controlled High Peak Borough Council were both approached for a comment on October 6 concerning the changes to the HS2 project but they had still not replied with a statement by the time of publication.