Luton Airport appoints former Labour cabinet minister as new chair May 5, 2025 Luton Airport has appointed former Labour cabinet minister and peer Lord John Hutton as chair as it presses ahead with plans to significantly expand capacity. Lord Hutton served in both Tony Blair and Gordon Brown’s cabinets as Secretary of State for Defence, Business and in the Department for Work and Pensions, where he led initiatives [...]
Growing aviation does not conflict with protecting the environment, says transport secretary March 19, 2025 Growing the UK’s aviation sector is not a trade-off against protecting the environment, the Transport Secretary has said. Speaking at the annual dinner of the trade association AirportsUK, Heidi Alexander said she will “never accept the false trade-off” that pits the two issues against each other. The UK government has placed airport expansion at the [...]
Transport secretary ‘minded to approve’ Gatwick expansion February 27, 2025 The transport secretary is “minded” to approve Gatwick Airport’s plans for a second runway but only if it accepts certain revised requirements, it has been announced. Heidi Alexander on Thursday gave the £2.2bn project a ministerial nod of approval should the airport agree to some additional demands. These include noise mitigation and the extent to [...]
Gatwick expansion rationale not impacted by Heathrow third runway, regulator says February 25, 2025 The UK’s aviation regulator has put its weight behind Gatwick Airport’s proposals for a second runway as it accepted a range of financial commitments from the hub over the next four years. The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) on Tuesday said the expansion plans would still provide “benefits to consumers” even if Heathrow also gets a [...]
Five airport expansions at once? London’s economy is finally ready for takeoff January 28, 2025 London’s airports are an economic success story for the whole UK. Increasing capacity is a no-brainer, writes BusinessLDN chief John Dickie.
Heathrow, Gatwick and Luton: Ministers preparing to back London airports expansion January 21, 2025 The government is preparing to approve major expansion plans at three London airports, according to reports. Chancellor Rachel Reeves is poised to announce her support for additional runways at Heathrow and Gatwick, and a bid by London Luton to significantly increase passenger capacity, in a speech later this month, according to Bloomberg. Reeves’ speech has [...]
London Stansted reports busiest ever year as £1.1bn expansion gets underway January 13, 2025 London Stansted has reported a record year of passenger traffic as it pushes ahead with a £1.1bn expansion plan unveiled in the Autumn Budget. The hub to the North East of London welcomed 29.8m passengers in 2024, a 5.8 per cent increase on the previous record of 28.1m in 2019. It followed the airport’s busiest [...]
Ministers push back decision on Luton Airport expansion for third time December 17, 2024 Luton Airport wants to increase passenger capacity from 18m to 32m per year through a £2.4bn expansion project.
Millions embark on getaways during busiest travel weekend of year July 27, 2024 The Port of Dover said it was also expecting its busiest weekend, with 11,000 tourist cars over the course of Saturday.
Why airport expansions fuelled by booming travel demand could be a double-edged sword July 15, 2024 In a report, the ratings agency Moody's said rising passenger numbers would drive "significant investment" in expansion projects.
