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Economic Development

New inquiry launched into downgrade of HS2

Cross-party Transport Select Committee will examine issues related to last year's Integrated Rail Plan including decision to cancel Leeds leg of high-speed rail scheme

An inquiry is to be held into new rail plans which include downgrading HS2

A new inquiry has been launched into controversial rail plans which saw part of the HS2 project downgraded last year.

The inquiry has been announced by the cross-party Transport Select Committee following the news in November that the eastern leg of the high-speed rail project was being massively curtailed,

The original plan was for trains to run between Birmingham city centre, a brand new station in Toton near Nottingham and Leeds - known as phase 2b.

But the Government confirmed months of rumours when it said the high-speed trains would instead stop at the existing East Midlands Parkway station before switching onto conventional tracks and continuing journeys to Yorkshire and the North East.

There was widespread anger, particularly among business, political and civic leaders in the Midlands and North, when the HS2 downgrade was announced even though other aspects of HS2 - namely the planned leg between Birmingham, Crewe and Manchester - would proceed as planned.

Phase one between Birmingham and London is already under construction.

Birmingham City Council leader Ian Ward called the revised HS2 plans "a blow for the people and communities of Birmingham and the West Midlands" while leaders in the North were similarly angry about separate downgrades to Northern Powerhouse Rail.