London airport plans could add 'another Heathrow' to capital's aviation capacity

Transcript

00:00Five of London's six airports are pressing ahead with plans to massively increase their ability

00:04to handle flights and passengers. This includes new runways at Gatwick and Heathrow and a new

00:09terminal at Luton. Plans at Stansted and London City have already got the go-ahead from ministers,

00:14while Gatwick and Luton are still waiting for sign-off. The biggest and most controversial

00:18scheme of all is the £14bn third runway proposal for Heathrow. This plan is now officially under

00:24review, following the massive slump in international travel during the pandemic.

00:28Industry insiders think the airport's chief executive will push forward with the project,

00:32triggering another huge campaign of opposition and presenting the Labour government with a

00:36big dilemma. If all five of the London airports get the all-clear for their projects, it will

00:41eventually add capacity for an extra 83.5 million passengers a year by the mid-2040s.

00:47This is roughly equivalent to the number currently using Heathrow each year. Now,

00:51this outcome is probably unlikely. However, Labour's decision last month to overrule

00:56Newham Council and increase the number of weekend and early morning flights from City

01:00alarmed environmentalists and those who oppose the schemes. Downing Street has said that it's

01:04not opposed to new runways or terminals in principle, so long as plans meet four tests

01:09on economic growth, consistency with climate change obligations, noise pollution and air pollution.