The Government has put back a decision on whether a third runway should be built at Heathrow until next month. Transport Minister Geoff Hoon said the views expressed by both opponents and advocates of the expansion needed “proper consideration”.
Mayor Boris Johnson, who opposes the runway and is exploring a new airport in the Thames estuary, said he hoped the delay was an indication Ministers “are starting to listen to reason and take seriously the concerns of the many thousands of people who would be badly affected by the scheme.”
The Mayor said a third runway “could have serious environmental consequences, and it is imperative that the Government consider alternatives to it, as I have been doing.”
Green Party Assembly Member Darren Johnson said an additional runway “will do nothing to help London recover from the recession, but would cause a massive increase in noise, air pollution and carbon emissions.”
