Chesterfield Borough Council’s Leader, Councillor Tricia Gilby has signed a letter from the campaign group HS2 East to ensure the Eastern Leg of HS2 gets delivered in full.
In a letter delivered to Prime Minister Boris Johnson today, local leaders were part of a cross-party group from cities and towns across the breadth of Eastern England calling for HS2 East to be delivered in full as soon as possible. The signatories also include Lord Patrick McLoughlin, the former Derbyshire Dales MP and Secretary of State for Transport. The letter lands on the Prime Minister’s desk alongside a copy of “Mind the Gap” a new report which demonstrates stark social and economic inequalities between the Eastern and Western regions of the Northern Powerhouse and Midlands Engine.
Councillor Tricia Gilby said: “The Council has exciting and comprehensive regeneration plans for both Staveley and the area around Chesterfield Station, based on the once in a life-time opportunity that HS2 offers. We were pleased when the Prime Minister confirmed his support for the full HS2 project in February this year and appointed a Minister for HS2, Andrew Stephenson. However, what is less clear is how and when HS2 will be delivered. We need certainty.
“We are calling for the Government’s Integrated Rail Plan to deliver the Eastern Leg in full and as soon as possible as both a way of levelling up some huge disparities between the East of England and the rest of the County and as part of the COVID-19 economic recovery plans”. The report encourages the Government to see HS2 as an investment, not a cost, a plan to release the promise of the East of England.”
You can read the full letter that was sent to the Prime Minister and the ‘Mind the Gap’ report on the HS2 East website.
