London business backs Gatwick’s £2.2bn second runway proposals
London business groups have backed Gatwick’s proposals for a £2.2bn second runway, arguing the expansion plans would be a boon for the capital’s connectivity, jobs and trade.
Last week, the West Sussex hub submitted proposals to the UK Planning Inspectorate to bring its emergency northern runway into routine use, forecasting this would create 14,000 new jobs and pump £1bn into the economy.
Richard Burge, Chief Executive of the London Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), told City A.M. that the group “fully supports” Gatwick’s proposals.
“As air travel demand continues to increase and with passenger traffic returning to pre-covid levels, the additional runway would maximise job and economic opportunities,” Burge said.
The London business chief added that “London businesses would benefit from Gatwick’s enhanced resilience, which helps sustain the all-important flow of visitors to the UK, and the trade flows through logistics operations, on which London and the rest of the British economy operates.”
Gatwick’s CEO, Stewart Wingate, told CityAM last week that the plans would increase its capacity and allow it to muscle in on Heathrow’s dominance in the long-haul flight market.
The plans come as other airports, including Heathrow, City Airport, London Stansted and Luton, are all plotting infrastructure or capacity expansions of their own, signalling a remarkable revival in fortune from the lows of the pandemic.
“Smart investments from the private sector, such as Gatwick Airport bringing their second runway into routine use, should be seized with both hands,” BusinessLDN, a non-profit group who represent London businesses, said in a statement today.
“We must also be honest about the fact that there is no economic future for the UK that doesn’t rely on being connected to the global economy, and that requires having enough runway capacity available.”