High Speed Rail (West Midlands-Crewe) Bill — House of Lords, 2020-12-14
Topic: Transportation
Charlotte Vere (Conservative, Centre-right): My Lords, in moving that the Bill do now pass I will make a couple of observations and reflect on its passage—but I will do so fairly briefly. The Bill was introduced in the other place in 2017. It made relatively swift progress, carrying, as it does in your Lordships’ House, cross-party support. However, since being brought to your Lordships’ House in July 2019, its passage has been rather less than high speed. The Bill has had to contend with a general election, a revival Motion and legislative capacity issues due to the Covid-19 pandemic. It has been an absolutely unprecedented period, but it is with great pleasure that I return it to your Lordships’ House today, hopefully for the last time I note these events to highlight the extraordinary work of the Select Committee in this context. With the introduction of social distancing and Covid-secure practices, the Committee had to alter its working practices almost at the moment of its inception. Under the leadership of the noble and learned Lord, Lord Hope of Craighead, the committee showed adaptability, compassion and unwavering fairness when hearing the concerns of petitioners. I pay tribute to the work of the chair and of my noble friends Lord Haselhurst, Lord Brabazon of Tara and Lord Horam, and the noble Lords, Lord Goddard of Stockport, Lord Liddle and Lord Snape, who all served on that Committee. Many gave their further assistance in participating in subsequent debates on the Bill and took time to share their in-depth knowledge of the issues under consideration. On completing the hearings, the Select Committee published its report outlining its considerations and observations and making recommendations. I wish to note that all these recommendations were accepted by the Government in full It would be remiss of me not to extend my thanks to all those outside your Lordships’ House who contributed to this Bill. Promoting a hybrid Bill is no mean feat. It would not be possible without the continued hard work of dedicated staff at HS2 Ltd, many of whom have worked on this Bill from its development to its completion and will continue to work on the project for many years to come. Of course, there is also the fantastic Bill team at the Department for Transport. This was my first time in close contact with a hybrid Bill, and the team members supported me with patience and good humour as I tried to get to grips with this less-than-commonplace legislative beast. They have done an outstanding job. Finally, I am sure that noble Lords would wish to join me in thanking the staff in the legislative offices of both Houses, the House authorities and the team of parliamentary agents and counsel for their continued expertise and assistance However, this Bill is fundamentally about people, and specifically the people affected by the Bill, so I pay tribute to the individuals, businesses, communities, organisations and local representatives who all joined in and engaged with the process of this Bill, through consultation and the petitioning process. The Secretary of State has made more than 1,500 binding commitments to those living alongside this short section of HS2 It is Royal Assent to this Bill that many of these commitments are predicated on. If it so pleases Her Majesty, it is time for this Bill to pass and for the commitments to be given force. I beg to move.