The Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne has said that 30,000 jobs could be created if the construction of a new high speed rail line from London to Birmingham goes ahead.

More than 8,000 of these jobs are forecast for the West Midlands, with 4,500 of those at the planned new station site in Birmingham.

Early findings from research by High Speed Two Ltd show that new job opportunities would be created by regeneration and construction of new stations along the line of the proposed route. This would be in addition to the 10,000 jobs which are expected to be created directly from the construction of the line itself.

-- Advertisement --

Visiting the site of the planned new Curzon Street station in Birmingham, the Chancellor said: "These new jobs would provide work opportunities to thousands of people in Birmingham and the rest of the West Midlands. Returning the UK to sustainable economic growth is the Government’s overriding priority. By working closely with business and investing in infrastructure projects such as High Speed 2 we can provide the certainty and stability that businesses need to grow and invest in the UK."

(BMcN/GK)