A major new YouGov/TaxPayers’ Alliance poll of 2,732 British adults reveals that the public support billions in spending cuts to foreign aid, high speed rail, trade union funding and a Green Investment bank.
48% of those surveyed support cancelling plans to fund a new high speed rail line between London and Birmingham, Leeds and Manchester. This would save the government over £30 billion.
The cost of HS2 is a serious concern to the public, according to the poll, with only 34% of people supporting the high speed link.
51% support stopping the practice of paying full-time trade union organisers in large public sector organisations.
Matthew Sinclair, Director of the TaxPayers’ Alliance, said:
“Ordinary families are facing higher taxes and huge pressure on their finances, but the Government are wasting billions of pounds of taxpayers’ money. The public support alternatives that would blunt the need for some particularly painful measures and make room for lower taxes.
“There is strong support for cutting expensive projects like high speed rail, which they don’t see as the right use of their cash.”
“If the Government want to ease the burden on families and business, and remain popular while getting the country’s finances on track, it is critical that they consider some of these potential cuts.”
He added:
“There is no way taxpayers’ money should be supporting thousands of trade union activists who are planning strikes and fighting very necessary cuts to public spending.
“The unions’ actions will disrupt the services they claim to want to protect and make it harder to get government borrowing under control. If someone is working for a union, they should be paid by them.”
HS2 will be an investment sump, draining away much needed funding and preventing the much needed upgrading of the existing network.
Of greater benefit for Birmingham passengers would be the upgrading back to mainline standard and electrification of the old GWR route from Paddington via Old Oak Common, Princes Risborough and Aynho Junction.
Your all bloody “Luddite’s” in the UK, thant.peakank god I got out to somewhere that knows which way to go, http://www.developpement-durable.gouv.fr/Le-fuseau-de-passage-des-LGV.html
Improving the UK’s rail and other public transport systems are unassailable policies for the UK’s coalition govt and industries…
Similarly, putting the best British minds to work- preferably in collaboration with overseas partners- on the designing of rail-related products that eventually end up on and part of the UK’s rail systems ought to be core govt policy…
Ensuring that these products and their underlying technologies- if necessary in adapted formats- have significant potential for export- should be as well…
In terms of long-term industrial strategies, the establishment of facilities in the UK to construct and/or assemble new trains/rail-related hardware for the country is less than 1/2 of what industry leaders and govt officials ought to be aiming for…
The creation of a self-sustaining rail technology (and public transport) research and development base in the UK is needed just as much…
The likelihood of EU member nations (and places such as India) that are upgrading their rail systems buying from the UK will be greatly increased if products and systems marketed are perceived to be coming out of a creditable, cutting-edge technology joint-venture- with its own well resourced, demonstrably functional R & D centre….
It could only make constructive sense for some of this fiscal year’s spending- perhaps collaboratively with overseas mega-corporations’ contributions- to be put towards the establishment of a rail transport R & D technology centre/campus in the UK… if necessary with the UK govt as a temporary minor shareholder in the venture….
Such a centre/campus comprising significant representation from a world-class rail technology leader such as Hitachi- http://www.hitachi.eu/products/business/public/index.html – along with a leading UK firm that has leading-edge complimentary technology expertise- such as Rolls-Royce- would be one way of providing the new centre/campus with automatic positive world-recognition…
A company like Rolls-Royce, BAE, or VT paired with an effervescent and competent international partner- such as Hitachi- and its Japan-based R & D resources- would immeasurably strengthen the viability and export-related potential of a UK based “world centre” for rail technology research & development…..
A well resourced, efficient ‘World-Centre-of-excellence’ for rail-and-public-transport research and development’ type facility in the UK could only substantially increase the likelihood of contracts to design, manufacture and assemble rail and public-transport products (+ their components and related hardware) going to existing UK-based companies and UK factories…
Roderick V. LouisVancouver, BC, Canada