Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will publish the (a) permissions and (b) legal assurances for clearances of vegetation planned to take place on 200 acres near Steeple Claydon Buckinghamshire by (i) HS2 Ltd (ii) contractors working for HS2 Ltd; and the dates on which they were obtained.
The permissions to undertake the work in question cover the following:
Land
HS2 Ltd’s contractors will initially undertake the vegetation clearance work using access rights granted under Schedule 2 of the High Speed Rail (London to West Midlands) Act 2017 (“the HS2 Act”).
This involves engaging with the landowners to discuss minimising the impact of the work.
The required land will be acquired under Schedule 16 of the HS2 Act 2017, notices of which are imminent to the landowners.
Ecology & Environment
The vegetation clearance proposed will be undertaken in accordance with the following ecological consents and licences:
The HS2 Act HS2 Organisational European Protected Species Licence for Great Crested Newt WML025. First issued March 2017.
HS2 Organisational European Protected Species Licence for Badger WML024. First issued February 2018.
Highway Authority
HS2 Ltd is in the process of producing applications under schedule 4 of the HS2 Act which detail the highway traffic management that it plans to implement to undertake the works. These are subject to approval by the local highway authority.
Network Rail
The Asset Protection Agreement Brief, required under the Framework Asset Protection Agreement with Network Rail, is in place, under which the possessions are currently being requested. As part of its commitment to keep communities informed of works that may affect them, HS2 Ltd also issued an Advance Works Notification to people within the vicinity of the area to be cleared, advising them of the planned work and how it may affect the local community. This was issued in early February 2019.