As expected, Chancellor Rachel Reeves has this morning confirmed the government’s support for a third runway at Heathrow, saying they are inviting proposals to be brought forward by the summer.
Such a development would mean an increase in the number of flights from the airport from the current level, around 480,000 per year, to 720,000.
Last Sunday, talking to Laura Kuenssberg, the chancellor pinned her hopes on a move to zero-or low-emission aviation: ‘A lot has changed in terms of aviation.
‘Sustainable aviation fuel is changing carbon emissions from flying. There’s huge investment going on on electric planes, and also a third runway will mean that instead of circling London, flights can land at Heathrow. So a lot has changed in aviation, and sustainable aviation and economic growth go hand in hand.
‘I believe that clean energy, that reducing our carbon emissions, are good for economic growth. We can do the two together.’
Not everyone however, is so sure. Writing last year, data analyst Hannah Ritchie said: ‘Aviation is one of the hardest sectors to decarbonize. Electricity can become low-carbon through the deployment of renewables and nuclear, road transport, and heating through electrification. Even “hard-to-abate” industries such as cement and steel have emerging low-carbon alternatives.
‘Aviation is, by comparison, behind the curve. Global demand will likely grow in the coming decades as populations get richer. Therefore, the rise in emissions will be determined by whether aviation can maintain improvements in energy efficiency and switch to low-carbon fuels. So far, the sector has made almost no progress on the latter.’
In 2018, the Climate Change Committee said: ‘Our premise is that it would be preferable to aim for a better Heathrow rather than bigger Heathrow and to capitalise on the world beating advantage of London’s five airports, in particular by improving surface accessibility to all five airports, which would be a major benefit to users. Our approach is to continue supporting the case for no new runways in the UK.’
In the midst of all this, Gatwick is waiting to hear whether they can move their second runway – currently only used for taxying planes as it’s too close to the main runway – and allow planes to take off from it. This would add 101,000 flights each year.
Earlier this morning, Campaign for Better Transport called for the removal of the tax breaks enjoyed by airlines in the UK: ‘Unlike in many other countries, aviation fuel in the UK is completely tax free, providing airlines with a multibillion-pound tax break. With airlines set to cash in on future flights, it’s the perfect time for the aviation industry to start paying its fair share of fuel tax.
‘If the Gov is determined to expand airports, adding 100,000s more flights to the skies and millions of tonnes of CO2 each year, then it needs to end aviation fuel’s tax-free status. Taxing kerosene could raise billions to invest in sustainable public transport.’