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Conservatives to axe second Stansted runway

Sunday 28 Jun 2009 9:03am

Current plans to build a second runway at Stansted Airport would be axed if the Conservatives win the next election according to the shadow secretary of state for transport. Theresa Villiers commented that she is 'more convinced than ever that a second Stansted runway was environmentally unacceptable and could not be justified on economic grounds'. Ms Villiers' statement came shortly after she met with members from campaign group Stop Stansted Expansion (SSE) in Essex. The village where the meeting took place would be demolished as part of the airport's expansion plans. The current government has postponed the Public Inquiry into the application for the second runway at Stansted, which has experienced a 20 per cent decline in passenger figures in the past two years. SSE's economics adviser, Brian Ross, said that Ms Villiers was 'remarkably well informed' about the contentious issues surrounding Stansted's proposed expansion. Mr Ross added that he was encouraged to see some of Britain's leading businessmen come out against the expansion plans earlier this week. Airport operator BAA, which owns Gatwick, Heathrow and Stansted, has been advised to sell the airport after an inquiry by the Competition Commission. BAA hopes to raise up to £2 billion from the sale of Gatwick Airport, which it put on the market shortly after the inquiry concluded. The bidding process for the airport has already closed, though the winning buyer has not yet been announced.

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