London Airports Expansion - legal protest win

[newswatcher]

From the BBC(26/11):

"The government has suffered a defeat over its plans to expand airports in the South East of England. Essex County Council, Medway District Council, Kent County Council and local residents have succeeded in a judicial review in the High Court over the government's consultation process.

They had complained that the government had not included Gatwick airport in Sussex as one of the airports that might be expanded in the near future.

The councils and residents oppose the proposals to expand Stansted airport in Essex and build a new airport at Cliffe at the Thames Estuary in Kent.

Mr Justice Maurice Kay, sitting in London, must now decide whether to quash the decision excluding Gatwick - or to quash the consultation exercise as a whole."

[Lost_luggage34]

I don't quite understand this legal challenge - could be a simple matter that this consultation paper extends beyond 2010 which I guess it does.

But LGW has a legal agreement for no expansion before something like 2008 ?

Seem to have answered my own point/question there.

Anyone care to clarify ?

[Andy_S]

It has more to do with the opposition of Essex County Council and Kent County Council to proposed expansion / construction of airports at Stansted / Cliffe respectively.

The government are going through a consultation process to identify sites for new runways in the South East. While expansion at Heathrow and Stansted, and a possible new airport at Cliffe have been identified as options, Gatwick has been excluded from the study for the reasons you gave (although the agreement not to build a new runway doesn't expire till 2019). However, this agreement could theoretically be overturned by an act of parliament, so Kent C.C, Essex C.C et al have argued that the consultation process was flawed, and have now won this case in the high court. Basically, they're hoping that the government will end up deciding to build a runway in someone elses back yard.

Incidentally, Mr Justice Maurice Kay has now decided to merely quosh the decision to exclude Gatwick rather than to throw out the governments consultation exercise as a whole, and has also allowed the government leave to appeal.

[Alloy]

And it has been recognised that the T5 enquiry took too long........................

……………..So how long is this lot going to take?


:rolleyes:

[Lost_luggage34]

Cheers for that Andy_S - was unclear about the LGW deal.

Makes some sense when you compare with Ringway and all the furore over their second runway.

[brabazon]

According to the BBC, Alastair Darling has announced that there will be a new consultation document published in January with a 4 month consultation period to follow that. Any decision will be Autumn 2003 at the earliest.

[Red Four]

So what happens to all the consultations that have already been sent in for the first deadline? Are they all conveniently binned, or will they still stand, although they are based now on the now incomplete earlier consultation? I think people should be told!