Airport bid to add £1bn to economy

Bristol Airport has published its final master plan for development for the next 15 years - which it says could add a further £1 billion per year to the West's economy.

- Richard Bache

But the proposals, which would see passenger numbers potentially increase to 15 million per year and see an additional 8,000 car parking spaces built at the airport, will be hugely controversial.

The airport’s previous round of expansion saw protracted legal and planning battles, accompanied by massive protests, largely on climate change grounds.

Swedish environmental campaigner Greta Thunberg led a high-profile march of 15,000 people against those earlier proposals in 2020.

However, those proposals were ultimately allowed after an appeal and the Labour government is seen as being in favour of airport expansion to help fuel economic growth.

The airport has been consulting on its latest master plan since November and last week published a 94-page document outlining its proposals for growth to 2040, including the launch of direct flights to the US and Middle East.

It said more than 2,000 people submitted opinions during the consultation period.