HS2 seeks 140-mile-long injunction to deter protesters

HS2 Ltd is appealing to the High Court this week for an injunction along the entire length of the construction of its high-speed rail line in an attempt to discourage further protests.

The hearing takes place on Tuesday and if granted the injunction will potentially make it a criminal offence for any persons to be on any land or property owned by HS2 Ltd without permission.

The move comes following years of disruption to the building of the controversial railway by protesters, who say the project is an unnecessary burden on the country’s landscape and finances.

The final straw for HS2 seems to have been the protest camp at Bluebell Wood in Staffordshire, known as Cash’s Pit Land, but there have been numerous others, most notoriously perhaps at Jones Hill Wood in Wendover, where activists lived underground in tunnels for 26 days in October last year.

As the particulars of the claim state: “…there are other significant Anti-HS2 Action activities which nevertheless continue to take place along the HS2 Land and experience has shown that the removal of the Defendants from the Cash’s Pit Land is highly likely to mean that the issues are simply displaced to another part of the HS2 Land.”

The injunction is being sort for all areas where construction is currently taking place, namely Phase 1, which runs from Euston Station in London to Great Haywood in Staffordshire, and phase 2a which goes on from Stafford to Crewe - approximately 140 miles in total.

Founder of StopHS2, Joe Rukin, told us: “HS2 are seeking to put in place what we believe is the largest injunction in British legal history without telling anyone.

“If this injunction goes through it will mean being on any part of any land which HS2 will or have used could be a criminal offence.

“That’s not just the work sites but every road it crosses, every house that they’ve bought, all the farmland they’ve used – even on a temporary basis that they’ve given back – all that land will be injuncted. It will be illegal to be in any of those places if this injunction goes ahead.”

A HS2 spokesperson provided Bucks Radio with the following statement: “We can confirm that HS2 Ltd has applied to the High Court for an injunction along the HS2 line of route. If granted by the Court, we hope that this injunction will act as a significant deterrent to often violent activists, and reduces the incidences of trespass and obstruction on our worksites that endangers the health and safety of our staff and those protesting.

“The construction of HS2 is playing a vital role in Britain’s economic recovery from the pandemic, with over 22,000 people already working on the project and tens of thousands of additional jobs supported through our supply chain. We urge everyone who cares about our natural environment to support a project that is providing work across the UK today, and in the future will get people out of cars, off planes and onto zero carbon rail travel.”

The High Court hearing is at 10:30am on Tuesday, 5^th April, at Birmingham Civil and Family Justice Centre.