Work on a third Heathrow runway will begin by 2020 when Brexit transition ends, says Chris Grayling
- Chris Grayling says work on Heathrow's third runway will start in about two years
- Transport Secretary says that Parliament just needs to back the expansion plans
- According to Mr Grayling, work will start when the Brexit transition period ends
Work on a third runway at Heathrow will be ready to start in a little over two years, the Transport Secretary said yesterday.
Chris Grayling said that if Parliament backs the expansion, the project will begin around December 2020, when the Brexit transition period ends.
He told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme this would follow outline planning consent being given by the time the UK formally leaves the EU in March 2019, saying:’ By the time that we leave the European Union... if all goes according to plan, it will have outline planning consent.
Transport Secretary Chris Grayling has said that work on Heathrow's third runway will be ready to start by around December 2020
Share this article
‘By the time we finish the transition period the construction work will be about to start.’
Mr Grayling said Parliamentary approval was the equivalent of giving the airport outline planning consent.
MPs yesterday said the airport expansion bid should not be approved without tougher measures to protect communities and passengers.
More safeguards on issues such as air quality, noise, regional connectivity and airport charges are needed before the third runway scheme gets the go ahead, according to the Commons’ Transport Select Committee.
It called on Parliament to support the project once its concerns have been addressed, accepting there is a case for expanding Heathrow.
The committee wants a more stringent interpretation of air quality laws and for noise estimates to reflect a range of possible flight paths.
A proposed night flight ban of six-and-a-half hours should be extended to seven hours and further evidence is needed that landing charges will not be hiked to pay for expansion, MPs said.
The committee’s report also urged the Government to provide more clarity on the funding and timeline of changes to the airport’s rail and road links - particularly the M25 - and how it intends to secure 15 per cent of new slots for domestic connections.
In October 2016 the Government announced that a third runway at the west London hub is its preferred option for increasing airport capacity in south-east England.
Outline planning consent will be given by Parliament if it approves a National Policy Statement (NPS) setting out objectives and requirements for the scheme.
The final NPS is due to be published by the Government for a vote in the Commons by the end of July.
Heathrow is the busiest airport in Europe with 78 million passengers in 2017.
A third runway would allow hundreds of thousands more flights a year.
The airport hopes to begin construction in early 2021, with the runway completed by the end of 2025.
Most watched News videos
- Incredible drone footage of Charmouth Beach following the rockfall
- Police in tactical equipment secure area after Bondi stabbings
- Knife-wielding man is seen chasing civilians inside Bondi Westfield
- Wind and rain batter the UK as Met Office issues yellow warning
- 'Tornado' leaves trail destruction knocking over stationary caravan
- Crowd chants 'bring him out' outside church where stabber being held
- 'Declaration of war': Israeli President calls out Iran but wants peace
- Israeli Iron Dome intercepts Iranian rockets over Jerusalem
- Hero who tried to stop attacker with chairs speaks out
- Ray Hadley in tears over daughter and mass Bondi Junction killings
- Hero cop is seen sprinting toward scene before taking down knifer
- Incredible drone footage of Charmouth Beach following the rockfall
