It’s worth keeping an eye on an announcement expected later by the UK Transport Secretary Phillip Hammond about plans for a new high speed rail line from London to Birmingham.
Although the project is one that would create a new line in England, today’s announcement is likely to affect Welsh politics in two ways.
Firstly, it’s one of the big projects put forward by the previous Labour government which the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition has been reviewing.
Another is the planned electrification of the line from Swansea to Paddington – the very line I’m on as I write this. (That’s my excuse for any spelling or typing errors.)
A decision on that is not expected until the new year and the government’s opponents fear it’s about to be shelved or reduced in scope so that, say, only part of the line is electrified.
On the other hand the government says it’s all still to play for although the costs have to be looked at more closely.
You can see that the expected decision to go ahead with the London to Birmingham scheme will only highlight the uncertainty over the London to Swansea plan, something that Labour and Plaid Cymru will continue to draw attention to.
But the other impact to watch for is on the Welsh Secretary herself.
Her Buckinghamshire constituency is one of a series of Conservative areas through which the new line would be laid.
She has said that she would vote against her government if it sticks to the current proposed route. As a cabinet minister that would mean she would have to resign.
The Transport Secretary says he’s listened to and acted on the concerns of colleagues like Mrs Gillan. We should find out later if he’s done enough to win her over.
ITVAdrian 
Despite most of the transport headlines being about snow the announcement on HS2 is very important. We have long seen the UK economy being too reliant on London and the South East, HS2 is essential to encourage economic growth in our other cities. A look at Ebbsfleet shows the boost that high speed rail can bring.
While it is clear that the next high speed rail route is going to Birmingham and the North we must keep the pressure up for high speed rail to South Wales. Electrification is only the first step. The Bow Group study (http://www.bowgroup.org/files/bowgroup/The_Right_Track_PDF.pdf) showed how it would be comparatively straight forward to upgrade the London to Bristol and South Wales line.
While money is very tight it is important that Government sets out a framework from which the economy can grow. We’ve spent too long admiring high speed rail in other countries, its time for the UK to catch up. I hope the MPs who are opposed are able to see the broader benefit.