Gatwick’s £2.2bn second runway to be challenged in court
Gatwick Airport’s £2.2bn second runway will be the focus of a legal challenge at the High Court on Tuesday, as an environmental group opposes the government’s decision to grant the approval.
In September, Gatwick Airport’s second runway, the Northern Runway, received development consent from the transport secretary, Heidi Alexander.
Gatwick has had a northern runway since 1979, but agreements have limited its use to emergencies. Now, under this approval, it can move its emergency runway 12 metres north, enabling it to be used for departures of narrow-bodied planes such as Airbus A320s and Boeing 737s.
This will enable it to be used for an additional 100,000 flights a year.
Speaking at the time, Chancellor Rachel Reeves said, “A second runway at Gatwick means thousands more jobs and billions more in investment for the economy.”
But campaign and environment group Communities Against Gatwick Noise Emissions (CAGNE) launched legal action against the decision.
The group filed a judicial review claim over what it claims is a ‘flawed’ application-granting process, due to a failure to properly assess the project’s greenhouse gas emissions and its impact on climate change.
Leigh Day senior associate Julia Eriksen, representing CAGNE, explained: “The group will argue that development consent for the expansion should not have been granted, given what they feel are a number of gaps in the planning application and assessment of environmental effects.”
The campaign group and the Department for Transport will be at the High Court for a hearing from Tuesday to Friday.
A Department for Transport spokesperson, said: “We are backing airport expansion to deliver local and national growth, providing highly skilled jobs for local communities which will boost access to opportunity.”
“We are clear expansion will only be pursued in line with our climate, noise, and environmental obligations.”