Heathrow puts third runway on hold

Plans for a third runway at Heathrow Airport have been put on hold by owners BAA in the face of opposition from the Conservative party.The airport operator will not submit a planning application ahead of the general election in June, according to reports.

If the Conservative party come to power next summer they plan instead to focus on improving capacity at regional airports and building more high-speed trains, with a commitment to scrap plans for a third runway at Heathrow in their general election manifesto.

BAA said in a statement: “We remain convinced that a third runway is the only viable, costed and thought through way of meeting the need for extra runway capacity to maintain this country’s global connections to the rest of the world, particularly in an era where long haul links to markets such as China and India are increasingly important...The process was always going to take until after the general election. We continue to work on the application and will take as long as is necessary to prepare a proper submission.”