The Government’s handling of the case for the controversial HS2 rail network, which is scheduled to reach West Yorkshire in 20 years, has been described as ‘a shambles’ by a Bradford business leader who supports the scheme.

And avid HS2 critic, Shipley property developer Andrew Mason, has dismissed a new report by KPMG claiming HS2 will boost the economy by £15 billion a year.

He has submitted a Freedom of Information request to discover the cost of the analysis.

Paul Mackie, president of Bradford Chamber of Commerce, believes the planned link, which will have a spur to Leeds from 2033, is necessary to serve a growing regional population.

He said: “The way the HS2 issue has been handled by the Government is a shambles. It’s all about capacity and not speed and ministers need to focus on that.

“The new link is necessary, not to cut travel times between West Yorkshire and London, but to ensure that the rail network is able to cope with growing demand from an expanding population.

“We need to look at ways of getting more traffic off the roads while improving communication links that benefit business in this part of the world.

“If HS2 doesn’t go ahead it will be akin to not building the M1 or M62 motorways or having no air travel and it’s difficult to imagine life without them nowadays.” Keighley MP Kris Hopkins also voiced support, saying: “We need the new North-South high speed rail line because the key rail routes connecting London, the Midlands and the North will soon be overwhelmed.

“Not investing in a new line will mean more people having to stand and no room for new services as these existing lines become overcrowded and overburdened.

“But these figures also show that the new rail line will be good for the local economy providing a boost to the hardworking people and businesses of West and South Yorkshire.”

The KPMG report – produced for HS2 Ltd., the company responsible for delivering the scheme – predicts it will bring productivity gains to Bradford, Calderdale, Kirklees, Leeds and Wakefield equivalent to a 1.6 per cent increase in local economic output in 2037, or £1billion annually .

Andrew Mason, chief executive of Newmason Properties, said he supported infrastructure spending but wanted schemes that could be delivered quickly.

He said: “I don’t want to land my children with the costs of a scheme that is so far own the line and based on spurious predictions.

“The KPMG report claims it will boost the economy by £15 billion every year, whereas HS2 itself originally said the benefits would be £6.5 billion over the 60 year fife of the project.

“ I have read the KPMG report which would fail an A level economics exam as the arguments are shallow and untested and based on spurious analysis.

“I agree with the Public Accounts Committee chairman Margaret Hodge that the HS2 proposals are bonkers.”