Councils, MPs and Peers come together to urge the Government to reveal the hidden costs of airport expansion

A group of West London politicians have come together to urge the Government to reveal the true, hidden costs of expanding Heathrow.

As the Government gear-up over the next few months for a full parliamentary vote on the future of the airport, a lot of questions still remain unanswered – particularly around the true cost to the taxpayer and impact expansion would have on other regions around the country.

In a letter, coordinated by the Leader of Richmond Council, published by the Guardian newspaper today (14 March), Council Leaders, MPs and peers, highlight the impact that a Heathrow expansion would have on the rest of the country – particularly the North of England and Scotland.

Signatories include: Cllr Ravi Govindia (Leader of Wandsworth Council), Cllr Ray Puddifoot (Leader of Hillingdon Council), Cllr Simon Dudley (Leader of Windsor and Maidenhead Council),  Zac Goldsmith MP (Richmond Park and Kingston), Dr Vince Cable MP (Twickenham),  Andy Slaughter MP (Hammersmith), Ruth Cadbury MP (Brentford), Marsha de Cordova MP (Battersea), Justine Greening MP (Putney), Baroness Kramer and Lord True.

Read the full letter (pdf, 77 KB).

Cllr Paul Hodgins, Leader of Richmond Council, said:

“Lots of promises have been made to lots of people in different parts of the country about the extra domestic routes they can expect if a third Heathrow runway is built.

“But all of these gloss over the costs of delivery. Where will the money come from, what much needed projects will suffer as a result, added to the health impacts of worsening noise and air pollution in south and west London while cheerily talking up the prospects of improved internal connections from an expanded hub airport.

“Wherever we live in the UK we all have a stake in ensuring Parliament makes the right decision on Heathrow expansion. We know from the Government’s own forecasts that an additional runway can be delivered more quickly and at less cost at Gatwick.

There will be a price to pay for Heathrow expansion – and not just in the South East. The Transport Secretary has a duty to spell out the true costs for taxpayers – and to be realistic about the benefits.”

Notes for editors

If you are a journalist and would like further information about this press release, contact Elinor Firth on 020 8487 5159. 

Reference: P162/18