Heathrow ruling may allow PM to return to Gatwick plans
The government may now decide to return to plans to expand Gatwick rather than Heathrow, says Sky's Paul Kelso.
Monday 2 March 2020 06:31, UK
The repercussions of this judgment will be felt well beyond the suburbs and villages surrounding Heathrow.
The Court of Appeal justices have not just lifted the immediate threat of demolition from homes in the path of the third runway.
By finding against the government on environmental grounds they have raised the bar for all infrastructure projects, public and private, and prioritised consideration of the impact of carbon emissions.
Environmental groups argued that the government's decision to approve the third runway was unlawful because it failed to take account of the Paris climate accord, under which the UK pledged to work to keep global temperature increases below 2C.
The original judgment was emphatic however that the Paris commitments had not been incorporated into UK law and therefore had no effect.
Overturning that position is a stunning triumph for environmental groups and a landmark moment for campaigners, regulators and developers.
Until now pledges to cut carbon emissions, including the government's target of hitting net-zero by 2050, have been theoretical, more easily said than done.
This judgment turns the rhetoric into concrete, practical case law.
The judgment does not rule out further expansion of UK airports, but it does offer an opportunity for the government to change tack, perhaps returning to plans for Gatwick.
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Boris Johnson was always publicly opposed to Heathrow's expansion, but any sense of triumph in the PM's circle may prove pyrrhic.
Any expansion of airports, wherever they are, will now be much harder to get off the ground.