Next debate: Thursday 19th January - Should high speed rail be stopped?

Motion: This House Would Stop High Speed Rail
Location: Ye Old Cock Tavern, Fleet Street, EC4Y IAA
Time: 7:30
Date: Thursday the 19th of January

Last Tuesday, the government formally announced its plans to implement a new national high speed rail network running from London to Birmingham, Leeds, Manchester, and the East Midlands. The first phase of the project, also known as HS2, will be to connect London to Birmingham by 2026.

All three of the UK's leading political parties support high speed rail, claiming that it will slash journey times, reduce congestion, and create jobs. However, the government's plans have prompted a backlash from opponents of HS2 who claim that it will "wreak untold environmental damage" and "will never pay for itself", while the public and the press remain as of yet unconvinced.

The first leg of the network will not be operational for at least another 14 years, but construction will begin much sooner, prompting more immediate concerns about the impact of HS2 on communities up and down the route as well as the cost.

Is a high speed rail network for the UK really necessary; can it really deliver the promised benefits of jobs, prosperity, and regeneration of the country's railways; do opponents of the scheme have a point or is this just another case of NIMBYism; is HS2 a responsible use of taxpayers' money when drastic cuts are being made across the board to pay down the deficit; are there any viable alternatives?

You decide.

Admission:

Admission is, as ever, totally free of charge. All are welcome, so if you know anyone who might be interested in this debate, do feel free to bring them along.

Further Reading:

Background:
1) High Speed 2 gets the go ahead (BBC)
2) Mixed reaction to High speed rail go ahead (BBC)
3) Brits split over high speed rail (YouGov)

Arguments in favour:
1) High speed rail fears unfounded (Financial Times)
2) Yes to HS2 campaign (Yes to HS2)
3) High speed rail has regenerated regional cities in France (Yorkshire needs high speed rail)

Arguments against:
1) High speed rail a waste of money (Guardian)
2) Stop HS2 campaign (Stop HS2)
3) High speed rail right in principle but HS2 project is wrong (Daily Telegraph)


Joining the Central London Debating Society:

Membership of the Debating society is free of charge as is admission to each of our debates. If you would like to join, simply email us at central.debating@gmail.com

Once you're on our mailing list, you'll receive notifications of all upcoming events and will be eligible to speak at a debate or even try your hand at chairing.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter:

Join our facebook group and sign up for all our latest events and news updates. You can also follow us on Twitter to receive new updates and see who else is following us at http://twitter.com/centraldebating


The CLDS Team