Expanding Gatwick instead of Heathrow ‘could slash family holiday bill by £120’

A FAMILY holiday could be £120 cheaper if ministers give the green light to Gatwick’s expansion instead of Heathrow’s, the airport’s boss claims.

Gatwick chief executive Stewart Wingate said passenger fees at Gatwick – which boost the cost of a ticket – would be around £15 per person per flight after expansion.

But the Airports Commission, set up to look at the competing schemes, estimated that Heathrow’s fees would be up to £30 if it gained a third runway.

That means for a family of four the saving on four return flights could be as high as £120.

Heathrow disputed the figures, saying their charge would be ‘no more than £24’.

Mr Wingate said David Cameron should act quickly to approve a second runway at the West Sussex airport. He added: ‘This would be a great legacy for the Prime Minister.

‘He would be able to break ground on a new runway before the next general election, and whoever is prime minister after him would be able to open the runway before the following election in 2025.’

In its report, the Airports Commission backed expansion at Heathrow rather than a second runway at Gatwick, or building a new airport in the South East.

Mr Cameron is expected to announce a decision within weeks after it was delayed repeatedly, leading to accusations that ministers are dithering. He gave MPs a ‘guarantee’ last July that ministers would rule on expansion ‘by the end of the year’.

But ministers announced further delays in December in an attempt to win the mayoral election in London last month. They blamed the need to assess fur-

‘A great legacy for the PM’

ther the impact on air pollution. In a letter to Mr Cameron yesterday, Gatwick chairman Roy McNulty said there were ‘insurmountable’ problems with expansion at Heathrow. He argued that a second runway at Gatwick would give Britain two ‘world-class airports’, boost economic growth and provide dozens of long-haul services.

Mr McNulty also guaranteed that Gatwick would not need a taxpayer subsidy, compared with a need for billions at Heathrow.

Gatwick would not breach air quality limits, and would give £1,000 annually to 15,000 residents affected by noise. Those affected most would also get a 25 per cent premium when selling their home.

Mr Cameron will face opposition from MPs in the Gatwick area, including Crispin Blunt, the Tory MP for Reigate and chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, and Sir Nicholas Soames, MP for Mid Sussex.

A Heathrow spokesman said: ‘Gatwick’s figures are not true and have no grounding in reality.

‘We expect the passenger charge to be no more than £24 by 2030 and in return they will get one of the best value-for-money infrastructure projects in the UK, an airport Britain can continue to be proud of and over 40 new longhaul routes to new destinations.

‘The Airports Commission confirmed that a third runway would deliver “more substantial economic and social benefits than any other shortlisted option” and that it can do so “most easily and quickly” than any other option, with “all passengers benefiting from enhanced competition” – we will deliver on that.’