In a survey of almost 400 businesses by the Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce (GBCC), 78% said that the HS2 rail link will have ‘a positive economic impact’ on the West Midlands, while only 5% said that it will have a negative impact. GBCC chief executive Jerry Blackett said: “HS2 comes with tremendous opportunities to regenerate parts of the city, implement a comprehensive package of transport improvements, and ‘up-skill’ the region’s workforce.

“Businesses need connectivity in a globalised world, and the HS2 project links in directly to the West Midlands’ export strategy. For instance, it will open up access to Birmingham Airport to a much wider section of the UK population and, by linking to the Channel Tunnel, will make trading with Europe even easier.”