Heathrow: What are the airport expansion plans and why are they controversial? | British news Aitrend

Heathrow’s expansion plans could finally go forward after almost 20 years of debate and delays.

Its potential renewal comes after the chancellor Rachel Reeves said it would cancel environmental objections to allow the largest London airport to carry out its plans in order to prioritize economic growth.

She should use a speech this week To support expansionas well as similar plans for Gatwick and Luton.

But what exactly does the airport want, and why has it proved so controversial?

Heathrow wants a new track

THE West London Hub wants to build a third track in the northwest of the two existing, which, according to him, would allow 260,000 additional flights per year and “to allow Great Britain as a sovereign nation to compete more effectively for trade”.

Its plans also include a new terminal west of Terminal 5 and the possible demolition of Terminal 3 to make way for a series of new satellite terminals and more public transport.

Despite being given Parliamentary approval in 2018The plans were delayed by legal challenges and the cocovid pandemic.

Why is it controversial?

Environmental groups have campaigned against expansion since the plans were developed.

Last week, Jenny Bates, transport activist at Friends of the Earth, called on another track to Heathrow “extremely irresponsible to be a catastrophic misstep for a government that claims to be a climate chief. »»

He has had criticism through politics over the years, notably the mayor of London London Sadiq KhanBased on the impact on air quality, noise and net-zero targets.

Boris Johnson was a long -standing opponent of the plans, and promised to “lie down before these bulldozers and stop construction” when he was mayor of London for the Conservatives – although he attenuated his rhetoric Once he was Prime Minister.

Ed Miliband was one of the stronger criticisms, who threatened to resign from Gordon Brown from the 2009 Gordon Brown cabinet, when he was an energy and climate change secretary.

In 2018, he said that an expansion was “very likely” to worsen air pollution.

Mr. Miliband, now net zero secretary, said he would not resign Of the government if the expansion goes ahead, adding that the position of the government is so that any expansion of aviation takes place in the budgets of the carbon of the United Kingdom, which are part of the plans to reach the objective of Country in 2050 to reduce emissions by 100% compared to the levels of 1990.

“We believe that we can respect our growth mission – our number one priority – and maintain in carbon budgets and indeed that our clean energy mission is crucial and a central part of the meeting of our growth mission”, He said last week.

“Far from being in contradiction, they are absolutely complementary.”

Other London airports also pressure for extensions

Gatwick and Luton airports also hope to develop in the near future.

Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander has a deadline of February 27 to make a second track in Gatwick, which would effectively imply the modification of an existing traffic lane.

The majority owners of Gatwick, Vinci airports, said that the 2.2 billion pound Sterling project would create 14,000 jobs and generate 1 billion sterling pounds per year in economic advantages.

But the communities against Gatwick Noise and Emissions (Cagne) insisted that they would legally challenge any second track.

Meanwhile, Luton airport, held by the local Bedfordshire council, asked to build a new terminal and asked permission to increase its number of passengers to 32 million per year. He transported approximately 16.7 million in 2024.

Dr. Alex Chapman, principal economist at New Economics Foundation (NEF), said that he thought that the growth benefits of the British airport expands.

He added: “The massive climatic damage caused by these regimes will create deep physical and economic difficulties for millions of people and eliminate any advantage from the other efforts of climate policy of the government almost overnight.”

What does Rachel Reeves say?

The Chancellor hinted on Thursday a strong allusion to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, that she intends to reject climate concerns and support the extensions of Heathrow, Gatwick and Luton because she said that “growth is the number one mission of this government “.

Asked directly if she was now going to put the track, as well as the expansion to Gatwick And LutonBefore the commitments of the Net Zero of the United Kingdom, Ms. Reeves said: “I will not comment on speculation, but what I would say was when the last government was confronted with difficult decisions on the opportunity of Supporting infrastructure investment, the answer has always seemed not.

“We cannot continue like this, because if we do it, we will miss a crucial investment here in Great Britain. You have already seen a number of decisions, notably on Stansted and City Airport, on energy projects, on transport infrastructure because we are determined to develop the economy. »»

Conservative leader in favor of Heathrow’s expansion

Kemi Badenoch, leader of the Conservative Party, said Sunday morning of Sky News with Trevor Phillips She “certainly put back” the plans of Heathrow.

“I had to vote on this subject before, and I voted in support of the third track,” said Ms. Badenoch, whose district of northwestern Essex includes London Stansted airport.

“I know it’s very difficult for many people when there is an airport in your region. I know, because I am also the deputy for an airport. I have never opposed growth or development.

“What I want to do is make sure it happens in the right way.”

Ms. Badenoch added that if the airport thinks that it is able to deliver a third track which meets all the criteria it has set, then we must “do the right thing”.

“We are talking about the future,” she said, adding, “I think we have to make sure we deliver infrastructure. I have already voted for that, so why change my mind?

What does Heathrow say?

A Heathrow spokesperson would not comment on a third track, but said that “the growth of the economy means adding a capacity to the British Hub airport which is full”.

In a statement to Sky News, the airport added that it “envisaged potential options to deliver a third track to online Heathrow with strict carbon, noise and air quality tests”.