Leading northwest travel agent Richar Slater has questioned the government’s backing for a third runway at Heathrow, claiming aviation growth can be achieved through existing airports such as Manchester.
Slater, who is managing director of Henbury Travel in Macclesfield and is also a non-executive director of Abta and the association’s northwest regional chair, also questioned the environmental impact of constructing a new runway at the UK’s largest hub.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves outlined backing for a third runway in a speech last week, pointing to benefits in relation to job creation and trade and describing the expansion as “badly needed” as the last full runway in the UK had been constructed in the 1940s.
Slater said: “The Chancellor’s persistent focus on Heathrow’s third runway raises serious questions about its necessity.
“While airlines such as British Airways and American Airlines continue to operate high-frequency routes, such as multiple daily flights to Miami, many of these services could just as easily be routed from other airports like Manchester.”
He added: “Despite the Chancellor’s incorrect claim that no new runways have been built in the UK since the 1940s, Manchester, which already has a second runway constructed and opened in 2001, is currently underutilised and could help alleviate congestion at Heathrow without the need for further expansion.”
Addressing “the environmental crisis at hand”, Slater said the process of digging up land and using concrete was “inherently damaging”, while also flagging the impact on carbon emissions of additional traffic including staff travel and freight.
He added: “Rather than pursuing a new runway at Heathrow, we should look at optimising existing infrastructure. By maximising capacity at underutilised airports, we can better serve growing demand without the environmental cost of further expansion at Heathrow.
“The focus should shift towards sustainable solutions that make better use of the resources already available.”