Healey Backs Heathrow's £33bn Third Runway as Burnham Withholds Support
Updated
Updated · bbc.co.uk · Oct 17
Healey Backs Heathrow's £33bn Third Runway as Burnham Withholds Support
3 articles · Updated · bbc.co.uk · Oct 17
Summary
John Healey said in Bangkok that a third runway at Heathrow has “always been a case for growth,” sharpening the government’s pro-expansion message even as Prime Minister Andy Burnham again declined to endorse it.
The chancellor tied airport expansion to jobs and investment, while the Transport Department said it is reviewing responses to a now-closed consultation on the National Policy Statement before making further decisions.
Heathrow’s owners want explicit backing from Burnham by year-end, and chief executive Thomas Woldbye warned this week that failing to expand the UK’s busiest airport would be a “huge missed opportunity.”
The £33bn project would raise flights to 720,000 a year from 480,000, but it faces opposition over climate impacts, home demolitions, river diversions and rerouting part of the M25.
Heathrow handles more than 80 million passengers a year; the runway was once targeted for 2035 but the airport now suggests 2039 because of planning and regulatory delays.