I, along with my fellow North Kent MPs, have today requested an urgent meeting with the Prime Minister in order that we may clarify the government’s position on the proposed new Thames Estuary hub airport.
Since the last Labour government first proposed building an airport at Cliffe, a scheme which I and many other local campaigners fought against successfully, the continuing possibility of a new airport being built in the North Kent region has been a constant source of anxiety to the residents and communities in our constituencies.
No Estuary Airport! Mark Reckless MP and Nirj Deva MEP with local Medway councillors
As recent polling has shown, there is little appetite amongst the general public for such a scheme. The arguments presented by Lord Foster and the Mayor of London, and their respective teams, simply do not stack up. We do not need another costly consultation at the taxpayers’ expense into an idea which has already been conclusively dismissed. A new airport in the Thames Estuary is wrong for the environment, wrong for the economy, wrong for Kent and wrong for Britain.
These are not just the views of my fellow North Kent MPs. I know of a number of MPs representing constituencies on the North side of the Thames Estuary which would be affected who also strongly oppose, and are campaigning against, these proposals.
We are urging the government not to proceed and asking that they should, instead, consider how we can fully utilise and improve the capacity of existing airports in the South East, and others such as Birmingham.
For our residents, our communities, our environment, and our future, it is now time for the government to drop these preposterous plans once and for all.
“improve the capacity of existing airports in the South East,”What do the residents of West London, Surrey and Essex think about that?
I am a North Kent resident and I am in favour of this project. It will put Kent on the international map and bring with it jobs, infrastructure, regeneration and a must needed boost to the local economy. My daughter is 13 years old and with a million 16-24 year olds out of work, her future prospects aren’t good. This airport would provide at least some opportunity of a viable future for her and those of her generation.