A ROW has erupted over the cost of building the High Speed Two (HS2) line.

A transport watchdog, as well as the Stop HS2 campaign and Gazette blogger Keri Brennan, say the budget has risen by at least £4billion from its original projected £32.7bn.

A figure in a document available from the Department for Transport website states that the capital cost would amount to £36.4bn.

However, when the Gazette called the department a spokesman maintained the route is still projected to come in at the original figure.

In effect, he said the figure had been inflated to include taxation but the Government would be able to claim the tax back.

He told the Gazette: “The £32.7bn is in factor prices, not market prices, which are inflated to reflect the average indirect rate of taxation across the economy. Market prices are used in appraisal to place the cost elements of the scheme on to a comparable basis with the benefits.

“However, since the Government is able to recoup indirect taxation paid on goods and services we do not expect to spend this figure.”

Mrs Brennan, Hillingdon Against HS2 chairman, said the public were still being deceived over the true cost.

She said: “The interesting point here is that all their benefits are in market prices and it’s standard practice to publish the costs in comparative terms.”

Transport Watch said: “Is it not dishonest that ministers continue to cite the cost as £33bn when that value excludes trains costing £8bn, and tax?”

Meanwhile, not one, not two, but three legal challenges have been launched against the government’ decision to build HS2.

HS2 Action Alliance (HS2AA) announced it submitted two of its own judicial review cases against the Department for Transport (DfT), following 51m Group’s earlier promise to start court proceedings.

While the group of 15 local authorities, including Hillingdon Council, is lumping all of its HS2 critiques into one legal bid, HS2AA separated them into two challenges.

A judicial review examines the lawfulness of how a decision is made, rather than whether it was right or wrong.

HS2AA launched one review over a lack of information on compensation measures, and another over the absence of an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA).