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26.05.16

DfT unveils compensation package for HS2 Phase 2a route

A property compensation and financial assistance package for owner-occupiers along the HS2 Phase 2a route between the West Midlands and Crewe has been announced today.

Owners-occupiers of homes and businesses positioned from 60-120m from the railway will be offered 10% of the unblighted value of their property, between £30,000 and £100,000, or the chance to sell their property at the unblighted value.

Once the HS2 Bill receives Royal Assent, owner-occupiers within 300m of the line can apply for a homeowner payment worth £7,500 to £22,500.

Additionally, eligible owner-occupiers living in urban and rural areas at any distance from the line of route can now apply to the need-to-sell (NTS) scheme, which also pays the un-blighted value to people with a compelling reason to sell their property, but who would been unable to do so – other than at a substantially reduced price – due to HS2.

Simon Kirby, chief executive of HS2 Ltd, said: “By opening services to and from Crewe in 2027, the benefits of HS2 will be brought to the north much sooner than initially planned.

“It is right that anyone affected by construction of the railway is properly compensated and given the all the assistance they need. The measures announced today underline our commitment to fair treatment for communities along the route of the railway.”

HS2 has previously been criticised in reports by former Independent Police Complaints Commissioner Ian Bynoe and the Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee for problems in how it engages with communities.

(Image c. HS2 Ltd)

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