'Come clean' call on all areas affected by HS2

Campaigners against the £32 billion high speed rail line have called on the Government to come clean about where else in the West Midlands could be affected.

They warn that the line could pass near to Cannock Chase, an area of outstanding beauty, but no official plans have been drawn up for the lines beyond Lichfield to Manchester and Leeds.

Transport secretary Philip Hammond said objectors were "fabricating future routes that haven't been designed or even sketched out yet".

Work on the first part of the line between Lichfield and London could begin around 2017 and is currently subject to consultation.

It will mean 225mph trains, two new stations in Birmingham and a 25-minute saving on journey times between Birmingham and London.

But a second phase of the line, one which will create a Y-shaped spur, will take trains to Manchester and Leeds.

Campaigners against the line, called High Speed 2 (HS2), believe the only way to do that and to keep trains going in a straight line, so they can reach their full speed, would be on a route to the east of Rugeley and on to Stafford.

However this means it could be possible for the high speed line to travel on or next to existing rail lines.

Jerry Marshall, chairman of Action Groups Against High Speed Two (AGAHST) said: "It should not be difficult to get a reasonably clear idea of the route. I think it is important that people are aware of areas that may be affected, particularly when it will cost £1,000 for every household."

Transport secretary Philip Hammond said: "The anti-high speed campaign is clearly desperate as it is now resorting to making things up and fabricating future routes that haven't been designed or even sketched out yet. They are trying to scare people and there is no truth in what they are saying."

Staffordshire County Council is formally objecting to the first phase which would pass close to Lichfield.

Bosses said they believe homes near Lichfield would be affected and that four ancient woodland sites would be "destroyed". They also believe it will concentrate all of the economic benefits around Birmingham without enough of the jobs and other growth filtering through to Staffordshire.