Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced government support for a third runway at Heathrow Airport, despite facing criticism from within the Labour party. Reeves argues the expansion is crucial for economic growth and the UK's global competitiveness. The decision has sparked immediate opposition from London Mayor Sadiq Khan, citing concerns over noise, air pollution, and climate change.
Follow all the twists and turns in Chancellor's speech on MailOnline'sRachel Reeves faced a furious Labour backlash today as she insisted Heathrow 's third runway must go ahead.
Watched by Cabinet ministers - but notably not Net Zero Secretary Ed Miliband, who has opposed the Heathrow plan - Ms Reeves said a bigger airport would increase GDP and make the UK the 'world's best-connected place to do business'.Ministers want Heathrow to present plans by June, but it is thought opening a third runway will take at least a decade.
But critics have voiced extreme scepticism about the sudden focus on growth measures - with Labour's huge Budget tax raid and workers' rights overhaul blamed for crushing confidence. London Mayor Sadiq Khan immediately signalled he will resist the plan, saying he 'remains opposed' due to the 'severe impact it will have on noise, air pollution and meeting our climate change targets'Rachel Reeves said the Government is 'inviting proposals to be brought forward by the summer' and will then 'take forward a full assessment through the Airports National Policy Statement'.
The Civil Aviation Authority determines the cap on per passenger charges that airlines must pay to Heathrow. The Planning Inspectorate will consider the application and make a recommendation to the Transport Secretary, who will decide whether to grant the DCO. 'We will then take forward a full assessment through the airport national policy statement. This will ensure that the project is value for money and our clear expectation is that any associated service transport costs will be financed through private funding.
'I will scrutinise carefully any new proposals that now come forward from Heathrow, including the impact it will have on people living in the area and the huge knock-on effects for our transport infrastructure. They are seeking planning reforms that mean they can be confident an application to build the scheme will not be held up for several years because of appeals.
If all those barriers are overcome, the next stage will be for the airport to apply for permission to go ahead with the project through a Development Consent Order . 'We no longer have to do that. We can do so much better. Low growth is not our destiny, but growth will not come without a fight, without a Government willing to take the right decisions now to change our country's future for the better.Ms Reeves complained that UK productivity had lagged behind major rivals.'Productivity, the driver of living standards, has grown more slowly here than in countries like Germany or the US.
Environment Secretary Steve Reed, Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander and science minister Lord Vallance were in the audience for the speech. A new 'Growth Commission for Oxford' to review how to accelerate growth will be launched, and Sir Patrick Vallance is being appointed as 'Oxford-Cambridge Growth Corridor Champion'.
Gatwick airport in West Sussex wants to bring its second, emergency runway into routine use for take-offs by smaller aircraft, providing a major boost in capacity and resilience.The airport says construction could start this year and be completed by the end of the decade. Advertisement 'There is no way to commute directly from towns like Bedford and Milton Keynes to Cambridge by rail. And there is a lack of affordable housing across the region.
'Thickets of red tape that, for all the Tories talked a good game, was allowed to spread through the British economy like Japanese knotweed.' Shadow business spokesman Andrew Griffith said: 'Labour talk a big game on cutting red tape whilst simultaneously piling on more environmental regulations and propose their job-destroying Employment Bill. They must support, not punish, those who do the right thing.
HEATHROW ECONOMY LABOUR PARTY AIRPORT EXPANSION ENVIRONMENT
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