One Cabinet minister fretted to me yesterday about the implications of Justine
Greening’s appointment as Secretary of State for Transport. Their worry was not Greening’s position on the Tory ideological spectrum but her views on aviation. This minister worried
that Greening, who helped lead the opposition to a third runway at Heathrow, would be against any expansion in airport capacity.
In recent months, opinion has been shifting at the top of the Tory party on the airports issue. People were increasingly coming round to the view that there was need for an extra airport or at least an extra runway somewhere close to the capital. They were, in line with the general shift towards growth and away from greenery, increasingly persuaded that the country’s competitiveness required more capacity.
The Sunday Times reports today that Boris Johnson response to the government’s aviation strategy warns that London will become a ‘branch line’ city unless a new airport is built.
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