LBA is actually quite well located for the West Yorkahire passenger. If there were to be one Yorkshire airport, then Wakefield would have been the place to put it. Alas, the opportunity was there in the 60's (in the form of an airport at Ferrybridge) but Whitehall left airport development - outside of BAA - up to local authorities. Local authorities took a largely parochial view, hence the current situation in Yorkshire.
LBA may well suffer from adverse weather, and it doesn't have the longest of usable runway length, but there is no evidence to suggest this has held it back. Careful planning and investment could in theory double capacity. It ultimately comes down to whether there truly is the will, and the demand to do so.
As far is long haul is concerned, there is only room for one major airport along the M62 corridor. MAN has the critical mass, along with the strong market to lower the risk to operators. There is no evidence to suggest that the likes of Emirates or united would want to serve a Yorkshire airport. If - in the unlikely event that they did - provisions could be made at one of the current ones.
All that said before we even go into the physical constraints of Church Fenton, and the fact it frequently suffers from adverse weather too..