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Government to evict local people for toll road it promised not to build

12 February 1998

The BNRR, the largest new road in the country, will cut a huge swathe through the West Midlands Green Belt and cross two nationally protected wildlife sites (Sites of Special Scientific Interest). The road will also destroy scores of homes and blight many others.

The Government intends to go ahead with the road:

  • despite promises in the past that it wouldn't build it;

  • despite receiving fresh evidence from its own advisors earlier this week that building roads does not benefit the economy;

  • despite a court case challenging the Government to reveal the concession agreement for the road and prove they acted legally;

  • despite a Minister having misled Parliament last year about whether the proposals had a reliable economic analysis;


Gerald Kells, Roads Campaigner for West Midlands Friends of the Earth, said:
“If the Birmingham Northern Relief Road is built it will stand as a monument to the hypocrisy of the New Labour Government. They promised not to build the road. They promised to put the environment at the heart of Government. Yet they now threaten to destroy huge areas of countryside and ruin the lives of thousands of people. And the worst of it is they know that the road won't do any good.”

A 2 page briefing sheet on the BNRR is available on request.


If you're a journalist looking for press information please contact the Friends of the Earth media team on 020 7566 1649.

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Published by Friends of the Earth Trust

 

 

Last modified: Jul 2008