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Heathrow third runway: Tory MP Yeo urges Cameron to act Heathrow third runway not right for UK, says Greening
(about 2 hours later)
A Tory MP has urged Prime Minister David Cameron to decide whether he is a "man or a mouse" over the issue of a third runway at Heathrow Airport. Justine Greening has said the government remains opposed to a third runway at Heathrow, despite calls from Conservative MPs for a change of heart.
Writing in the Daily Telegraph, Tim Yeo, who backs expansion, urged him to act or risk "presiding over a dignified slide towards insignificance". The transport secretary said expanding Heathrow was "not right" for the UK and other options needed to be considered - including building a new hub airport.
It has been suggested top ministers are reconsidering their opposition. Some ministers have reportedly urged a rethink amid strong business support.
But Transport Secretary Justine Greening said there was a "political consensus" against a new runway. And backbencher Tim Yeo said David Cameron must show whether he was a "man or a mouse" by backing the idea.
The coalition agreement between the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats rules out any expansion before the next election. The coalition agreement between the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats rules out any expansion of Heathrow before the next election, while Labour also currently opposes the idea of a third runway at the UK's largest airport.
Labour also currently opposes the idea of a third runway. But a consultation on future air capacity in south-east England has twice been delayed amid reported divisions within the coalition and Conservative ranks.
Dismissing the fresh calls, Ms Greening - whose Putney constituency is on the Heathrow flight path and who campaigned against a third runway before becoming a minister - told the BBC that the facts on the issue had not changed since the 2010 election. 'Long-term solution'
"The coalition agreement stands," she told Radio 4's Today programme. "The prime minister stated that only a few weeks ago." Ms Greening, whose Putney constituency is on the Heathrow flight path and who personally campaigned against a third runway before becoming a minister, said the coalition agreement was "very clear" in its opposition to a new runway at Heathrow.
But href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/transport/9501875/A-third-runway-must-be-cleared-for-take-off.html" >writing in the Telegraph, Mr Yeo said the "environmental objections" to the expansion of Heathrow were "disappearing". "I don't think any of the facts have changed around a third runway," she told Radio 4's Today programme. "The facts remain as they were at the time of the election."
He said the prime minister's government must find its "sense of mission" and immediately approve the building of a new runway.
She said concerns over increased noise, pollution and disruption to the surrounding area had not been addressed and suggested that a new runway would not be long enough to accommodate new, larger planes and would be full "within a few years".
"There is now a cross-party consensus that a third runway... is not the right thing for Britain," she said.
"Make no mistake - a third, short runway will not be a long-term solution to our country's hub capacity question that we currently face.
"Britain deserves better and deserves a much longer-term aviation plan than it has had in the past."
The idea of a new airport - like one proposed by London Mayor Boris Johnson in the Thames Estuary - was "clearly one of the options", she added, as well as existing airports working more closely together.
Asked about her own position, Ms Greening said she would find it "difficult" to remain in government if it reversed its position on the issue, while insisting this was a "hypothetical" situation.
In March, reports suggested Chancellor George Osborne was pushing for the runway idea to be reconsidered.
'Dignified slide''Dignified slide'
"The prime minister must ask himself whether he is man or mouse," wrote Mr Yeo, chairman of the Commons energy and climate change committee. Since then, a number of Tory MPs have warned that the UK is being left behind in aviation, saying a new runway is needed to boost trade and competitiveness.
Housing Minister Grant Shapps, tipped for promotion in a reshuffle, said on Friday that "all the options need to be considered while being mindful of our election manifesto".
And Mr Yeo, chairman of the Commons energy and climate change committee, said his long-held "environmental objections" to Heathrow expansion were "disappearing".
He told the Daily Telegraph that European Union carbon emissions caps would force airlines to use more environmentally friendly planes if they wanted to use new capacity at Heathrow.
And he added: "The prime minister must ask himself whether he is man or mouse.
"Does he want to be another Harold Macmillan, presiding over a dignified slide towards insignificance?"Does he want to be another Harold Macmillan, presiding over a dignified slide towards insignificance?
"Or is there somewhere inside his heart - an organ that still remains impenetrable to most Britons - a trace of Thatcher, determined to reverse the direction of our ship? Let's go for it.""Or is there somewhere inside his heart - an organ that still remains impenetrable to most Britons - a trace of Thatcher, determined to reverse the direction of our ship? Let's go for it."
Mr Yeo, a former Conservative environment minister, was previously a high-profile opponent of expansion, but now argues that European Union carbon emissions caps will force airlines to use more environmentally friendly planes if they want to use new capacity at Heathrow. 'Totemic issue'
"The environmental objections are disappearing," he wrote.
"Last January, greenhouse gas emissions from flying were brought within the EU cap. Indeed, we could cover the whole of Surrey with runways and not increase emissions by a single kilogram."
The coalition government scrapped Labour's plans for a third runway when it came to power, following widespread opposition from councils, residents and green groups.The coalition government scrapped Labour's plans for a third runway when it came to power, following widespread opposition from councils, residents and green groups.
However, a number of Conservatives have been converted to the runway cause. The BBC's political editor Nick Robinson said the business community saw the future of Heathrow as a "totemic" issue regarding the government's ability to take long-term economic decisions.
Mr Yeo's comments in the Telegraph come after Housing Minister Grant Shapps said "all the options need to be considered while being mindful of our election manifesto". But he said the prime minister would think long and hard before countenancing any change, mindful of his party's election promise and the damage that the U-turn over tuition fees did to the Lib Dems.
As the debate over expansion intensifies, Conservative MP Alun Cairns tweeted that such a step was "essential to spread wealth and prosperity to western and northern parts of the UK".
In March, reports suggested Chancellor George Osborne was pushing for the idea to be reconsidered. But fellow Conservative Sarah Wollaston said the no-expansion pledge was "unequivocal" and Mr Cameron "would show greater strength" in maintaining opposition.
Ms Greening told the BBC that she would find it "difficult" to remain part of a government which reversed its position on Heathrow expansion but she said this was a purely "hypothetical" scenario.
She said a third runway would quickly fill up and the UK needed to be "bolder" on airport capacity - considering what the country's needs would be in 40 or 50 years' time.
"There is no sense we are going to move away from an anti-third runway position," she said. "I don't think any of the facts have changed around a third runway."
The BBC's political editor Nick Robinson said the business community saw the future of Heathrow as a "totemic" issue but the prime minister would certainly not want "to eat his words" over it.
Consultation delayed
Some residents who live under the Heathrow flight path oppose the third runway, saying better use could be made of existing airport capacity.
Campaigners have urged the government not to rush into any decision.
Tory MP Zac Goldsmith has said he will not stand as a Conservative MP at the next election if his party supports the idea. Mayor of London Boris Johnson also opposes expansion and is lobbying for a new airport in the Thames Estuary.
A £50bn project to build an airport east of London has been put forward by architect Lord Foster.
A consultation on the future of air capacity in south-east England has twice been delayed by the government. It is now expected to begin in the autumn.
Should a third runway be built at Heathrow? Do you live near the airport? What do you make of the political arguments over the issue? You can send us your comments using the form below.Should a third runway be built at Heathrow? Do you live near the airport? What do you make of the political arguments over the issue? You can send us your comments using the form below.