Heathrow expansion - our policy

As a council, we have a long-standing, cross-party opposition to Heathrow Airport Expansion.

Our 2022-2026 Corporate Plan affirms our opposition to Heathrow Expansion and commits us to oppose the third runway, further night flights, and to monitor the impact of ongoing airspace modernisation consultations. 

2020

In December 2020, the Leader of Richmond Council Cllr Gareth Roberts reaffirmed our opposition to expansion. He said:

“Covid has changed everything. Even Heathrow’s chief executive has admitted that a new runway would not be needed for years due to the pandemic.

“The government must now urgently review where future capacity is most needed – but this must be based on its commitments to legally-binding emissions targets and a UK-wide approach that properly reflects regional priorities.

“The Council’s priority is to protect the environment for its residents and achieve measurable and lasting improvements in their quality of life.

“This means a permanent end to night flights and the adoption of tougher measures to limit noise impacts. This should include rejecting the practice of ‘route concentration’ as a means of squeezing in more flights over densely populated areas. All this does is both increase noise and emissions. 

“As local councils we want the industry to get back on its feet. This doesn’t mean a return to the days of uncontrolled expansion. Those days are gone. Heathrow, like the rest of the sector, has to work within the context of legally binding emissions targets and heightened public awareness of environmental impacts.”

2015

Previously, the Leader of Richmond Council and the Leader of the Opposition joined forces in 2015 to reaffirm our total opposition to controversial proposals to expand Heathrow with a third runway.