We live next to Gatwick and are terrified we’ll have our homes ripped from beneath our feet and demolished so Rachel Reeves can build her second runway_Nhy
Families say their lives would be severely impacted and house prices decimated if a second runway is allowed to be built at Gatwick Airport.
They have blasted the Labour government which last week signalled that the plans would be approved, if environmental concerns could be met.
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said she was ‘minded to approve’ the extension but the deadline has been pushed back until the end of October while further consultation is carried out.
Locals in the nearby town of Crawley and surrounding villages believe the decision is being delayed and have slammed Chancellor Rachel Reeves for pushing it.
If the development goes ahead, it could mean the airport could use its emergency runway routinely, opening up space for an extra 100,000 flights a year.
But this would lead to a mutiny of locals leaving the county, they claim.
Structural engineer Ray Ogden, 63, blasted the plans.
He told MailOnline: ‘I’m not sure the answer to the problems that we have locally is to bring in millions more tourists each year and get them leaving. I cannot see the benefits.
Structural engineer Ray Ogden, 63, (pictured) said he is worried about the noise and pollution the extra runway will bring
Chancellor Rachel Reeves has been pushing for the runway, saying the expansion of sites such as Gatwick and Heathrow Airport is essential for economic growth
The expansion would enable the West Sussex airport to use its emergency runway routinely, opening up space for 100,000 more flights a year
‘It’s just more noise and pollution. We’re told we have to be more environmentally friendly but then they’re pushing this hard. It will just cause so many problems.
‘Our prices will suffer. They talk about jobs but I don’t think they’ll be the sort of jobs which will benefit local people who have lived here all their childhoods and teenage years. They’ll just move to London to work.
‘I have not read any sort of case which properly supports it. The government is just trying to rush these things through because they have a big majority.’
Mr Ogden said he would rather see local issues addressed first.
He said: ‘Our roads are a mess. There’s not enough school places and getting an appointment for the doctor and dentist is a nightmare.
‘People who have lived here decades have seen the state of Crawley and surrounding areas reduce significantly. But nothing is done to help us.’
The Planning Inspectorate turned down the original application for the new runway, but took the unusual step of recommending an alternative approach.
That would require more noise controls and over half of passengers to arrive at the airport by train.
Ms Alexander has heavily hinted at an approval, stressing she is not a ‘flight-shaming eco-warrior’ and ‘believes in airport expansion’.
Net Zero Secretary Ed Miliband has been sounding a far more sceptical tone about the airports push hailed by Chancellor Rachel Reeves.
Marketing worker Rhi Mctoal, 27, (pictured) said she doesn’t agree ‘at all’ with the idea and has been against it since it was first planned
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said she was ‘minded to approve’ the extension but the deadline has been pushed back until the end of October while further consultation is carried out
The Gatwick Area Conservation Campaign has placed signs around London which read ‘Gatwick’s Big Enough’ as they oppose plans for the new runway
Ms Reeves has argued that expansion of sites such as Heathrow is essential for economic growth, but Mr Miliband has stressed it can only happen if the UK’s carbon emissions targets are met.
Rhi Mctoal, 27, who works in marketing, said she has always been ‘dead against’ the idea since it was first planned.
She said: ‘I don’t agree with it at all. It’s a very hotly contested topic locally.
‘I can’t see how air travel will actually get better as a result.
‘We hear all of this about being green and environmentally friendly, which I support, then now it’s about getting the second runway going.
‘There’s always huge delays. The airport cannot cope at the moment. I fly out of there a lot and it is often chaos.
‘Adding thousands of extra flights isn’t going to improve the situation.’
Patricia Ladcock, 67, has lived in Crawley for 40 years and said it has made her want to move.
The dental hygienist said: ‘We were told for years not to worry about it because any government would side with the environment and not do it.
Retired RAF officer Terrence Sheehan, 85, (pictured) has lived in the area for 11 years and said the planes already keep him awake at night
Gatwick is London’s second largest airport behind Heathrow and handles more than 43 million passengers per year
‘But it looks like Labour and Rachel Reeves are hell-bent on destroying the local area.
‘If it goes ahead, I will move. It will ruin my house price. I fear it’ll decrease by 30 per cent. It is a terrible idea.
‘You don’t get that amount of extra flights without some serious consequences.’
Retired RAF officer Terrence Sheehan, has lived in the area for 11 years and said the airport at the moment was already having a negative impact on his life.
The 85-year-old said: ‘It’s been a nightmare. The planes keep me awake as it is. Even more of them will be worse.
‘It won’t improve the lives of local people. If anything, it will make it worse. Why bother?’
The Planning Inspectorate said Gatwick’s initial plan would cause ‘moderate levels of harm’ in areas such as greenhouse gas emissions, traffic and noise.
Its report stated that the ‘recommended DCO’ would introduce ‘a wide range of detailed planning controls’, which would mean ‘the benefits of the proposed development would outweigh harm’.
But Virginia Arnold, 70, said she would welcome the expansion – saying it would create more jobs.
The grandmother-of-eight said: ‘I have lived here for 50 years and I think it is needed.
Grandmother-of-eight Virginia Arnold, 70, (pictured) supports the new plans and thinks it will be ‘brilliant for the local economy’
Salesman Alex Bunn, 56, (pictured) said the plans would not keep him up at night, though he knows his indifference leaves him in a minority
‘It will be brilliant for the local economy and create a lot of jobs. My daughter lives in Dubai so we will be able to fly out more to see her and she can come here.
‘It’s quicker than going all the way to Heathrow. It’s a thriving airport is Gatwick. So anything to make it even better is brilliant.’
Salesman Alex Bunn , 56, said he was torn about what he thought.
He said: ‘It’s not the end of the world. The world is changing. I know far more people are against it though.’
Speaking to a gathering of aviation leaders last month, Ms Alexander said there are ‘capacity problems, particularly at airports in the South East’.
She revealed Gatwick’s development consent order application is ‘literally on my desk’ for a decision.
That would enable the West Sussex airport to use its emergency runway routinely, opening up space for 100,000 more flights a year.
In her speech at the annual dinner of trade body Airlines UK in central London, Ms Alexander said: ‘Some might say the current national debate about airport expansion highlights a fundamental tension between growing the economy, whilst protecting the environment.
‘I say we must do both.’
Speaking to a gathering of aviation leaders last month, Ms Alexander said there are ‘capacity problems, particularly at airports in the South East’
She added: ‘I am not some sort of flight-shaming eco-warrior. I love flying. I always have.’
In addition to making a decision on Gatwick, Ms Alexander is also required to determine whether Luton airport’s expansion plan can go ahead.
Meanwhile, Heathrow Airport is developing detailed plans for its third runway project.
Ms Alexander said her job as the ‘decision maker’ on airport expansion is to ‘strike a balance’ between the potential benefits of jobs, trade and tourism, with ‘tough questions’, such as whether the schemes will be compatible with the UK’s climate and air quality obligations, whether noise can be minimised and whether costs will be ‘shared fairly’.
Gatwick’s £2.2billion privately financed project would see it move the emergency runway 12 metres north.
The plan also involves remodelling and replacing existing taxiways – which connect runways to terminals, hangars and other facilities – extending both terminals, and installing new aircraft gates.
Road connections to both terminals would be enhanced, paid for by Gatwick, with flyovers to separate local traffic from vehicles travelling to or from the airport.
A £250million modification of the airport’s railway station was completed in November 2023.
Gatwick’s £2.2billion privately financed project would see it move the emergency runway 12 metres north. Pictured: The Northern Runway
Additional car parking, offices and hotels would also be provided.
The airport says its scheme is ‘shovel ready’ and construction could start this year.
It hopes the upgraded runway will be operational by the end of the decade.
Local campaigners opposed to Gatwick’s expansion have expressed concerns over the impact on surface transport, noise, housing provision and wastewater treatment.
But the airport insists it has conducted ‘full and thorough assessments’ of those issues.
The emergency runway is currently used as a taxiway or when the main runway is closed because of maintenance or incidents.
Under the plan, the emergency runway would be used for departures of narrow-bodied planes such as Airbus A320s and Boeing 737s.
Operating as a two-runway airport would enable Gatwick to add around 10-15 flights per hour at peak periods.
Rachel Reeves used a major speech recently to put airport expansion at the centre of her new economic growth plan. Pictured, an artist’s impression of the Heathrow development
This would see its total annual number of flights rise from 280,000 to 380,000.
It expects passenger annual numbers to rise from 45million to 75million.
Gatwick says its plans would create £1billion per year in economic benefits, and generate an additional 14,000 jobs.
A government source has previously said: ‘The Transport Secretary has set out a path to approving the expansion of Gatwick today following the Planning Inspectorate’s recommendation to refuse the original application.
‘This is an important step forward and demonstrates that this Government will stop at nothing to deliver economic growth and new infrastructure as part of our Plan for Change.
‘Expansion will bring huge benefits for business and represents a victory for holidaymakers. We want to deliver this opportunity in line with our legal, environmental and climate obligations.
‘We look forward to Gatwick’s response as they have indicated planes could take off from a new runway before the end of this Parliament.’
A London Gatwick spokesperson said: ‘Our £2.2 billion privately financed Northern Runway plans could be operational by the turn of the decade and will support the Government’s growth agenda generating an additional £1 billion per year in economic benefits and creating 14,000 jobs.
‘As part of the Development Consent Order planning process for our Northern Runway plans, full and thorough assessments have been carried out on surface transport, noise and environmental impacts.
‘We understand noise is an important consideration for local people and managing noise levels for the local community is extremely important to us. Our noise footprint has reduced by around a third over the last 20 years due to quieter aircraft.
A spokesperson for Gatwick Airport said they see managing noise levels in the area as ‘extremely important’
‘If our Northern Runway plans are approved, we will commit to ensuring noise levels are no louder than they were in 2019 – our busiest year. This can be done as quieter aircraft will join airlines’ fleets, offsetting any increase in noise from the additional flights.
‘London Gatwick’s plan supports the UK’s net-zero goals through the Jet Zero Strategy with London Gatwick committing to spend a £quarter of a billion to reach net zero for its own operations by 2030.
‘Recent polling shows 80% of responding residents across the South East support the airport’s growth plans, while more than 100,000 businesses were represented in letters to government endorsing our plans.’
MailOnline approached Rachel Reeves for a response, but a spokesperson said it would be ‘inappropriate’ for the Chancellor to comment as it is still a live issue.
