Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect of High Speed 2 on the (a) speed and (b) efficiency of travel for people travelling within the Midlands; and if he will make a statement.

HS2 will transform connectivity between the Midlands, London and the North. Within the Midlands it will deliver journey times of 20 minutes between Birmingham and the new East Midlands Hub; and of 37 minutes between Birmingham and Nottingham (a 32 minute reduction).

HS2 will also: improve rail service reliability; enable a higher frequency of services; improve capacity (including by enabling more commuter services into Birmingham) and improve access to Birmingham airport.