Second runway at Gatwick airport is given green light

Gatwick airport’s £2.2bn second runway plan has been given the go-ahead by the transport secretary, Heidi Alexander.

- Nadeem Badshah Jasper Jolly

With the privately financed project, the West Sussex hub is aiming to increase its capacity by 100,000 flights a year. Gatwick will move its emergency runway 12 metres north, enabling it to be used for departures of narrow-bodied planes such as Airbus A320s and Boeing 737s.

The new runway is expected to add 14,000 jobs and as much as £1bn in extra economic activity.

Alexander backed the scheme as a “no-brainer” for economic growth, Labour officials said yesterday, suggesting that flights could take off from the new full runway by 2029.

The cabinet minister is reportedly satisfied with adjustments made, covering issues such as noise mitigation and the proportion of passengers who would travel to and from the airport by public transport.

The Planning Inspectorate initially rejected the airport’s application and earlier this year recommended Alexander should approve the project if the changes were made.