UXBRIDGE BY-ELECTION CANDIDATES SHY AWAY FROM BACKING HEATHROW 3RD RUNWAY
PRESS RELEASE
23 June 2023
For immediate use
UXBRIDGE BY-ELECTION CANDIDATES SHY AWAY FROM BACKING HEATHROW 3RD RUNWAY
Candidates for the main parties in the Uxbridge and South Ruislip by-election have provided their views on Heathrow expansion, ahead of polling on 20 July.
Hillingdon based and cross-party campaign group Stop Heathrow Expansion sought statements from candidates from the Conservative, Labour and Liberal Democrat parties. All responded positively and their statements are copied below .
The Conservatives and Liberal Democrats are strongly opposed to the project, with just Labour taking a slightly more cautious line, although they acknowledge that the proposals presented in 2018 failed the party’s four tests on a third runway.
Heathrow expansion is currently on pause, at least officially, though the Airport states that it will make an announcement on the project’s future later this year.
Stop Heathrow Expansion’s Chair, Justine Bayley, commented that:
“It is quite telling that none of the main candidates in this by-election are advocating Heathrow expansion. A third runway is clearly not in the interests of the local or wider area for the reasons they have collectively outlined.
“All the parties recognise that Heathrow expansion proposals have failed to meet various environmental targets that have been set – and will no doubt fail again in the future – some more strongly than others.
“We firmly believe that Heathrow expansion needs to be off the political agenda not just ahead of this by-election, but through and beyond the next general election, regardless of which party wins. Local people deserve better than this threat continually hanging over them and their area.”
Steve Tuckwell, Conservative Party candidate, said:
“I have been opposed to expansion at Heathrow on behalf of residents as a local councillor and as part of Hillingdon’s long-standing campaign for many years.
“A third runway would bring more traffic to Uxbridge and South Ruislip, put pressure on our local road network, and bring aircraft noise to new parts of the constituency, all while failing to meet our environment targets.
“Heathrow expansion is not in the interests of Uxbridge and South Ruislip. I will continue to listen to local residents and oppose it on behalf of our community in the strongest possible way.”
Danny Beales, Labour Party candidate, said:
“Labour has long been clear that any airport expansion must pass our tests on air quality, noise pollution, delivering countrywide economic benefits and enabling us to meet our obligations on climate change. We will judge any proposals against those tests.
“It is no secret that when it was last comprehensively reviewed Labour said that proposals for an additional runway at Heathrow have not met those tests.
“Labour will continue to judge any future proposal for Heathrow airport expansion against the same tests.”
Blaise Baquiche, Liberal Democrat Party candidate, said:
“I am passionate about achieving Net Zero and will fight against the expansion of Heathrow airport. Heathrow is already the UK's biggest source of carbon emissions, and a third runway will increase the number of flights by 260,000 a year.
“On top of the huge increase in air pollution as a result, the noise of these additional quarter-million flights will be a major burden on residents of any constituencies near Heathrow, including Uxbridge & South Ruislip.
“As a committed environmentalist, I will hold the Tories to account on their poor record in tackling climate change, particularly as record levels of early on-set asthma plague Londoners.”
ENDS.
UPDATE 27/6/23:
Sarah Green, Green Party candidate, said:
“I am of course implacably opposed to any airport expansion. Heathrow in particular provides a very real threat to local health through the associated dreadful air quality.
“The air industry would barely be financially sustainable without huge subsidies and only serves a very small minority of the public. So much owed by so few to so many!
“We are in the midst of a climate and ecological EMERGENCY! We must start to understand! We must prepare to change from many accepted norms, and flying is top of the list.”