The rural agenda needs to be placed firmly at the heart of policy making after Government scrap HS2

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The rural agenda needs to be placed firmly at the heart of policy making after Government scrap HS2

MP for Buckingham Greg Smith said decisions affecting the countryside are made by people with 'no practical understanding' of rural communities and their livelihoods

Chris Brayford

06 October 2023 鈥� 3 min read

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(From left to right) MP Greg Smith, Defra Secretary Therese Coffey, Countryside Alliance chief executive Tim Bonner, Jonathan Brunyee and Conservative Rural Forum chair Lizzie Hacking

Conservative MP Greg Smith has criticised policy decisions which have had lasting impacts on farmers and rural communities after the Government scrapped HS2 this week.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak told the Conservative Party Conference (CPC) on Wednesday (October 4) the high-speed rail infrastructure leg between Manchester and Birmingham would be scrapped with £36 billion, instead, reinvested into public transport and roads outside of London in the future.

I am cancelling the rest of the HS2 project.

In its place we'll reinvest every single penny, £36 billion, into hundreds of transport projects in the North, Midlands, and across the country.

Here's why 馃憞
— Rishi Sunak (@RishiSunak)

Mr Smith, who represents Buckingham, was speaking at a Countryside Alliance fringe event at the Conservative Party Conference alongside Defra Secretary Therese Coffey, condemned decisions made by civil servants and Government funded organisations who had ‘no practical understanding of the countryside and farming communities' - particularly in reference to those who had been affected by HS2.

Having called on the Government to scrap HS2 altogether, he added: "Too many decisions affecting the countryside are made by people who do not understand farmers or how to run farming businesses.

"I do not mean politicians or ministers when I say this, but civil servants and ‘arms-length' organisations like HS2 which has ripped through rural communities and demolished farms.

"Too many decisions are made by people from London, Birmingham and Manchester who do not understand the countryside.

'There's a real issue with trust between politicians and the general public... Rishi Sunak, to Susanna's face, misled her'

Transport Secretary Mark Harper says the legal decision to cancel part of HS2 took place after questioned the Prime Minister on Tuesday
— Good Morning Britain (@GMB)

"They have no practical understanding of the countryside and farming.

"There are things the Government are on top of already but I do understand there are also things it needs to work on as well.

"The rural agenda needs to be placed back at the heart of policy making."

Former PM David Cameron was disappointed by the Government's decision at CPC - describing the new course of action as a ‘once-in-a-generation' opportunity which was now lost.

Today's decision on HS2 is the wrong one. It will help to fuel the views of those who argue that we can no longer think or act for the long-term as a country; that we are heading in the wrong direction.

HS2 was about investing for the long-term, bringing the country together,…
— David Cameron (@David_Cameron)

Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham has said the derailment of the scheme between Manchester and Birmingham had placed Northern citizens 'firmly as second-class citizens'.

West Midlands Mayor Andy Street called out the decision as as a ‘failure to level up the North'.

Transport Secretary Mark Harper confirmed farmers and communities affected by HS2 would not be granted any new compensation following Mr Sunak's decision.

HS2 said the project was a ‘catalyst for growth' in Britain - intended to connect people across the country by cutting journey times, create more space and boosting jobs outside London by 'respecting communities and ensuring value for money'.