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Nick Robinson
Political editor
Decision time on a new airport
It's Decision Time on whether to spend billions on a new airport for the UK.
It would, say its backers, stimulate growth and silence the noise of Heathrow. Nonsense say the critics. The idea of a brand new airport to the east of London is a vanity project which has been looked at in the 1940s and 70s and rejected. Others argue that the environmental costs of expanding air travel at all are simply too high.
I'll examine how any government would decide whether to take on the huge challenge of building a new airport with the head of BA, a green campaigner who got himself arrested to stop Heathrow being expanded, the former head of civil aviation policy in Whitehall, a former transport minister and a former climate change adviser at Number 10.
That's Decision Time on BBC Radio 4 at 8pm tonight, or you can listen afterwards here.
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Comment number 1.
ghostofsichuan25th January 2012 - 17:19
The thing to watch is, who gets the contracts. Another job creation project with an end date.
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Comment number 2.
stanilic25th January 2012 - 17:20
No it isn't so stop all this hyperbole.
Luton, Stanstead & Gatwick are under-used so why waste money on another.
Whilst on the subject of wasting money HS2 is another vanity project as are all thes silly windmills dotting the countryside.
Develop tidal power and build a fast broadband network. Cheaper, cleaner and neater!
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Comment number 3.
watriler25th January 2012 - 17:33
No. 2 Dont forget the regional airports like Manchester and Birmingham and what would the effects on Heathrow demand of HS2 should it go ahead. It is extraordinary how this government stricken by a debt crisis is thinking of all sorts of ways of spending public money like- trident, aircraft carriers, HS2, new airport.
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Comment number 4.
Its_an_Outrage25th January 2012 - 17:33
Just think of all the taxes that, you might believe, will be paid by the developers and operators against the vast profits.
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Comment number 5.
jim322725th January 2012 - 17:53
As someone who lives near Manchester the idea the regoinal airports can be utalised is good but we have to remember London is the Hub and needs to have as good links as continental cities . so we either upgrade exsisting airports other than Heathrow. or build a new one which could kickstart employment .
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Comments 5 of 85