Keith Brown will today announce plans for pressing home the case for a High Speed Rail link to Scotland.

Speaking ahead of the high speed rail summit in Edinburgh the Transport Minister outlined proposals for a pan-Scottish partnership to scope route alignments and potential rail termini in Scotland.

Mr Brown said: "The case for a High Speed Rail network all the way to Scotland is compelling, robust and clear – and the Scottish Government is committed to ensuring Westminster understands that without Scotland the case is substantially weakened.

"So while we support the Department for Transport’s plans to build to Birmingham, Manchester and Leeds, we argue that those plans don’t go far enough: a UK high speed network must include Scotland.

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"That’s why today I’ve announced a partnership which will not only reinforce the economic and environmental benefits of a link from Scotland all the way London and beyond, but will press ahead with work to shape how a high speed link in Scotland may look.

"This group will be responsible for taking forward our business case and high level planning for the route options in Scotland and termini locations in both Edinburgh and Glasgow, as well as identifying future demands and improvements for Scotland’s rail network to ensure readiness for Scotland’s high speed rail aspirations. The work will also determine likely costs of detailed design work and construction costs and help us inform future funding decisions.

"We will be inviting Local Authorities, Regional Transport Partnerships and representatives from the business and transport communities right across Scotland to work in partnership with the Scottish Government, to develop a single voice and a single vision for a high speed rail link all the way to Scotland."

(GK)