HS2 compensation ‘fails to address blight on farming’

The compensation package offered to landowners along the HS2 railway line fails to address the potential blight on farming, the NFU has warned.

Following a challenge to HS2’s initial compensation package in the courts, the NFU said farmers and landowners along Phase 1 of the line between London and Birmingham would suffer a massive impact.

The NFU remains seriously concerned over the impact the scheme will have if parliament gives the project the go-ahead.

These include the proposed long-term hardship scheme, which the NFU believes should be applied to all properties that are affected including all forms of business and all interests in land.

NFU head of policy Dr Andrew Clark said: “It is the interpretation of the criteria for ‘hardship’ that lies at the core of why this proposal is fundamentally flawed.

“This is why we urge the government to reconsider replacing it by a Value Based Property Bond Scheme, which could be applied in and outside of the ‘rural support zone’. This would enable the functioning of the housing market and for those eligible for compensation to receive a fair and reasonable settlement.”

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