A fast-growing campaign bankrolled by wealthy business leaders in the Home Counties could persuade the Government to delay or even scrap the HS2 high speed rail project, a Birmingham transport summit has been told.

Chiltern Railways managing director Adrian Shooter warned that opposition to HS2 by villagers in Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire was based on “narrow self interest” and took no account of benefits that 225 mph trains would bring to poorer parts of the country like the West Midlands.

He forecast that a planned £44 billion line between London and Birmingham might be “killed by apathy” if backers of high speed rail failed to make their voices heard during a five-month Government consultation exercise.

Mr Shooter told the city council summit that axing high speed rail would cost the Birmingham economy millions of pounds and hundreds of jobs.

He said: “I know personally many people who are absolutely determined that HS2 will not happen.

“These are serious people, lawyers and businessmen, and they have already engaged top PR companies to fight their corner.”

He added that a meeting at a Buckinghamshire village hall, attended by families living close to the planned high speed line, raised a £100,000 towards a fighting fund in a matter of minutes.

Mr Shooter added: “It has been said that opponents of high speed rail have £200,000 at their disposal. The truth is, they have far more than that.”

The Government will decide later this year whether the first phase of HS2 should go ahead.

High speed rail would slash journey times between Birmingham and London to 49 minutes.

Modern trains capable of carrying 1,100 passengers would leave from a new station at Curzon Street, in Digbeth.

A second phase, taking the line to the North-west and North-east, would reduce journey times to Manchester and Leeds by an hour.

The Government is backing the scheme in principle, warning that trains using the West Coast Main Line between Birmingham and London will be running at capacity by the mid-2020s. A high speed alternative will free up space on the WCML, allowing more local commuter services to operate.

Birmingham City Council leader Mike Whitby said the high speed network would help to reduce the north-south wealth gap by encouraging more businesses to relocate from London and the South-east to the Midlands.

Coun Whitby (Con Harborne) added: “High speed rail is essential if Birmingham is to be a competitive alternative to London.

He revealed that Birmingham has joined Leeds, Liverpool and Manchester in contributing to a £200,000 fund to promote HS2.