Heathrow ramps up third runway push, saying £33bn project can be fully privately funded

London's Heathrow Airport stepped up lobbying for a third runway on November 11, saying the project would cost about £33 billion, could be fully privately funded, and would deliver 60 percent of its economic benefits outside London and the South East. Chancellor John Healey said the same day that the government fully supports the project, but Prime Minister Andy Burnham has yet to state a position, and the airport has set a December deadline for approval.

The airport's case

Heathrow says a third runway would drive growth across the UK, and that it has signed a deal with Welsh steel producers and memorandums of understanding with about 40 regional airports, showing the benefits would extend beyond London. The airport said its timetable would slip if approval does not come by December.

Government not yet speaking with one voice

Chancellor Healey told Parliament's Treasury Committee on November 11 that the government fully backs a third runway, but Prime Minister Burnham has not yet commented publicly. The Department for Transport is reviewing the results of a public consultation that ended in early September. Residents' groups opposed to expansion are urging people in affected areas to write to the airport, calling it possibly the last chance to stop the project.

Sources: City AM (via Talkfuse); World Today Journal; BritBrief.