Tory High-Speed rail plans

One of the few policy announcements to come out of the Conservative party conference was David Cameron's pledge not to build a third runway at Heathrow airport and instead to build a high-speed rail network between Heathrow and London and then on to Birmingham, Manchester and Leeds.

Channel 4 news this evening had an interesting report in which several backbenchers (David Wilshire, Ian Taylor and John Redwood) appeared at odds with the leadership over these plans - they supported the third runway at Heathrow.

I trust that Cameron will not be dissuaded by rumblings on the backbenches over this. Obviously the two projects are not mutually exclusive, although I agree with Boris's sentiments that Heathrow is poorly positioned, hemmed in on all sides by settlement and probably should have been relocated in the 70s to the Thames estuary.

A high-speed rail line connecting Birmingham, Manchester and Leeds with London and Heathrow airport would bring far wider economic benefits to much of the country and free-up rail capacity on the existing network. With the public finances likely to be in a parlous state when the Tories gain power, it may well be that the £16bn of public money required to build such a network would require financing by further public borrowing. Keynesian economics appears to be very much in favour given the current bonanza of public money being spent on bailing out the banks.

The use of public money for major construction projects in the past has delivered many benefits. Much of London's underground network was built during times of economic hardship. Much of the 30s expansion of the Piccadilly line was a result of Government spending to offset the Depression of the 30s and then later fearing rising unemployment, the Victoria line was built during the 60s. The Jubilee line's extension, and the Docklands Light Railway, did much to regenerate the Docklands. (Although arguably, some may point out that the residents of the Canary Wharf skyline share some of the blame for the current economic woes). While little-loved by the daily commuter, these lines contributed to the expansion of the network and there is little doubt that the Underground is of critical importance to London's economic success.

The Government is already committed to the Crossrail project to build a new twin-bore tunnel through the centre of London linking Maidenhead in the West and Shenfield in the East taking in Canary Wharf and Heathrow Airport, and the Thames Gateway.

Cameron should go further. He should commit the Conservatives, as well as to building HS-2 and Crossrail, to building the other long-shelved tube plan being the Chelsea/Hackney line, a new Underground line through the capital from Wimbledon in the South West to Epping in the wilds of Essex. This would relieve pressure on the District and Victoria lines. Public transport in London is crucial to the success of the private sector in London and by investing wisely, it will help to guarantee London's pre-eminence for years to come.