Tories and Labour split on second city runway

THE Conservative and Labour West mayoral candidates have clashed over whether Birmingham Airport needs a second runway.

Labour’s candidate Siôn Simon said the region needs a second runway at Birmingham Airport “connecting us and our businesses to the world”.

And he pledged: “If I am elected West Midlands Mayor, I won’t accept ‘no’ for an answer on expanding our airport. And that means nothing short of a commitment to a second runway.”

But Tory opponent Andy Street, described the plan as “a vanity project” – because the airport, in Solihull, could handle twice as many passengers even without a new runway.

He said a second runway meant “spending tens of millions of pounds and wasting land necessary for employment and housing, while putting residents through major disruption.”

Future plans for Birmingham Airport have become a real dividing line in the mayor campaign.

Mr Simon said: “Birmingham Airport now serves 11 million passengers a year. It pumped £1.1 billion in to the West Midlands economy in 2014. The future of the airport will very much mirror the prospects for us in the Black Country and across the rest of the West Midlands.”

And he said the new HS2 high speed rail line due to open in 2026 was an opportunity to ensure the West Midlands got even more benefit from Birmingham Airport.

“High speed trains will run from Birmingham Airport putting it ‘closer to London’ in travel time than the ‘London airports’ of Stanstead and Luton.

“The West Midlands has the opportunity to host the first UK airport that is directly connected to high speed rail as well as traditional rail, road and tram networks. The resulting jobs and investment could be a real game-changer for us

“Only, though, if the government wakes up to the opportunities that a new runway – properly connected to other regional public transport - could bring to both the local and to the national economy.” .