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17 hours ago
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Rachel Reeves has given her heaviest hint yet that she will back a third runway at Heathrow airport, arguing that she is willing to make difficult decisions while pursuing economic growth.
The chancellor is poised to make a major speech this week where she will outline her plans to boost the British economy by radically altering planning rules and accelerating building projects.
On Sunday, she confronted the long-running political saga over expanding Europe’s busiest airport, claiming a third runway had environmental benefits such as fewer planes circling London – leading to cleaner air.
Cabinet ministers who have voted against Heathrow expansion in the past are preparing to put aside their objections. The Guardian understands that Darren Jones, the chief secretary to the Treasury who in 2018 described the environmental consequences of a third runway as “unconscionable”, does not view it as a resigning issue.
Lisa Nandy, the culture secretary who also voted against a third runway in 2018, would also not resign over it. Ed Miliband, the biggest opponent of aviation expansion within the cabinet, ruled out resigning last week.
Steve Reed, the environment secretary, is expected to drop his past objection to the plans. He said over the weekend that he opposed a third runway at Heathrow in 2018 because he was in favour of expanding Gatwick airport instead, on the basis that it would benefit his south London constituency.
Ministers are likely to be asked to sign off any announcement at cabinet before Reeves’s speech on Wednesday. The chancellor is expected to endorse proposals for a third runway at Heathrow in that speech, as well as expansion at Gatwick and Luton airports.
Speaking to the BBC’s Laura Kuennsberg on Sunday, the chancellor said that “sustainable aviation and economic growth go hand in hand”.
“Already this government had signed off expansion at London City airport and Stansted airport. Both of those decisions, again, were decisions that the previous government had stalled,” she said. “We are getting on and delivering, that will be good for investment and trade in our country and also good for families wanting to go on cheaper holidays as well.”
Asked about comments made in the past by Sir Sadiq Khan, the London mayor, about the impact of a third runway on the city’s air quality and progress towards UK’s net zero targets, Reeves said: “A lot has changed in terms of aviation.”
She argued that “a third runway will mean that instead of circling London, flights can land at Heathrow” and that more sustainable aviation fuels were “changing carbon emissions from flying”.
Speaking to Sky News’s Trevor Phillips on Sunday, Reeves said any announcement about airport expansion would be made “with full collective ministerial responsibility”. Meanwhile, Kemi Badenoch, the Conservative leader, said she “certainly would” back a third runway.
Campaigners have warned that the move would be a severe setback for the UK’s climate commitments. Critics also argue that even if approved, building a third runway would be extremely costly and time-consuming and that it would not necessarily deliver the economic benefits hoped for.
As part of their drive for economic growth, ministers announced plans over the weekend to make it easier to build homes in areas around commuter stations in England. Reeves told the Observer it was “about speeding things up, making a presumption in favour of building – and in this case building housing and saying that these are exactly the sorts of places you want housing”.
The chancellor is also expected to use her speech to unveil more changes to cut planning red tape to speed up more building projects. The government has pledged to deliver 1.5m new homes and secure 150 decisions on major infrastructure projects by the end of the parliament. So far, it has taken 13 planning decisions and approved nine nationally significant infrastructure projects including airports, energy farms and housing developments.
In another move that could bring an economic boost, the chancellor indicated on Sunday that she was “absolutely happy” to consider joining a tariff-tree trading scheme with Europe after a suggestion by the EU trade commissioner, Maroš Šefčovič.
Šefčovič said this week that the UK could join the Pan-Euro-Mediterranean Convention as part of a post-Brexit reset with the EU. Labour has ruled out rejoining the EU customs union or single market but vowed to seek closer economic cooperation with Brussels.
“It was really interesting to see Maroš Šefčovič this week suggest the UK might be welcome in that pan-European and Mediterranean customs framework,” Reeves told Sky. “We are absolutely happy to look at these different proposals because we know that the deal that the previous government secured is not working well enough.”
“It’s not working well enough for small businesses trying to export, it’s not working well enough for larger businesses either. We’re grownups who admit that, whereas the previous government said there were no problems at all”. The Tories criticised her remarks, saying ministers risked “undoing Brexit by the back door”.
