Mayor of London to join legal action by councils over Heathrow expansion

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has announced that he will join the legal action being brought by a group of councils against Heathrow Airport expansion if Parliament votes in favour of a third runway next week.

The action is being brought by Hillingdon, Richmond, Wandsworth and Windsor & Maidenhead councils, while Hammersmith & Fulham has recently indicated its intention to join. Transport for London is providing technical support to the councils.

Khan said: “While I believe in a better Heathrow, I do not believe a bigger Heathrow is the right answer for London and I remain committed to opposing such a short-sighted decision. There are no plans on how to deal with the valid concerns about Heathrow expansion.”

The mayor said the vote in Parliament was a critical moment, “and for the sake of Londoners affected by poor air quality, disruption from noise and the costs needed to improve transport connections I will do what I can to stop these poor plans”.

He added: “The south east of England is in need of additional airport capacity, but I believe the Government is pressing ahead with the wrong decision to build a new runway at Heathrow. It is my view that a second runway at Gatwick is a better option.”