Air flights

North Kent MPs put pressure on Government to scrap plans for a Thames Estuary airport consultation

Six MPs in Kent have sent a joint letter to the Government asking for a meeting to clarify its position on the estuary airport plans.

MP for Rochester and Strood Mark Reckless, Chatham and Aylesford MP Tracey Crouch, Gravesham MP Adam Holloway, MP for Gillingham and Rainham Rehman Chishti and Sittingbourne and Sheppey MP Gordon Henderson requested an urgent meeting with David Cameron to discuss the proposed Thames Estuary hub airport.

In a letter written by Mr Reckless, they admitted that the possibility of a new airport in the north Kent region was a “constant source of anxiety” to residents and communities in the area.

“As recent polling has shown, there is little appetite amongst the general public for such a scheme.

“The arguments presented by Lord Foster and the Mayor of London, and their respective teams, simply do not stack up. We do not need another costly consultation at the taxpayers’ expense into an idea which has already been conclusively dismissed.

“A new airport in the Thames Estuary is wrong for the environment, wrong for the economy, wrong for Kent and wrong for Britain.”

In the letter, Mr Reckless added: “These are not just the views of my fellow north Kent MPs. I know of a number of MPs representing constituencies on the north side of the Thames Estuary which would be affected who also strongly oppose, and are campaigning against, these proposals.

“We are urging the government not to proceed and asking that they should, instead, consider how we can fully utilise and improve the capacity of existing airports in the South East and others such as Birmingham.”