Jenrick is urged not to pull plug on airport plan
Minister delays decision on expansion
COMMUNITIES SECRETARY Robert Jenrick has been warned he would be “misguided to pull the plug” on Leeds Bradford Airport’s £150m development plan after he delayed his decision on whether it would be ‘‘called in’’ for further scrutiny.
The Tory Minister has decided his department needs longer to investigate whether to review the decision to build a new terminal building.
The “state of the art” building was given the go-ahead by Leeds councillors in February.
The outcome paved the way for the new terminal, an increase in passengers from four million to seven million a year and the expansion of daylight flying hours from 6am to 11.30pm.
But campaigners, academics and environmentalists have warned flights in and out of Leeds needed to dramatically reduce in order to help humanity avert climate
catastrophe in the coming years.
The proposed development has starkly divided opinion between those who see it is a crucial plank of economic development planning in the Leeds City Region and those who have cast it as a test case for the Government’s environmental credentials in relation to air policy.
The airport insists the new terminal is not an expansion, as it can already expand passenger numbers with its existing facilities, and that the replacement building will help it achieve its carbon net-zero goals.
As secretary of state for the Department of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Mr Jenrick has the power to take the decision on the planning application out of the hands of Leeds City Council by calling it in for a review.
It was referred to his department as it would constitute significant development on green belt land.
In February, LBA chairman Andy Clarke said his team would “work with whatever is thrown at us” to get their new terminal building over the line.
A spokesperson for LBA said: “We acknowledge the deadline extension and hope that the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local
Government will uphold Leeds City Council’s approval for our replacement terminal, which will deliver thousands of new jobs
and support the region’s economy.”
Henri Murison, director of the Northern Powerhouse Partnership lobbying organisation, said: “The Secretary of State would be misguided to pull the plug on a shovelready project which has the potential to unlock huge connectivity benefits for Yorkshire businesses and communities.
“It would give the North a
fairer share of flights, lowering the number of travellers forced to drive down to Heathrow.”
He added: “By keeping benefits of aviation concentrated in only London and the South East, protesters are risking Northern jobs and livelihoods – just as the recovery could be about to kickstart genuine economic rebalancing by allowing businesses to better distribute their talented people across the UKs city regions.”
Protesters are risking Northern jobs and livelihoods. Henri Murison, director of the Northern Powerhouse Partnership.