Britain is an island trading nation.
That simple fact means our prosperity has always depended on how well-connected we are to the rest of the world.
London’s airports today are at the heart of Britain’s global connectivity and the economic opportunities that it brings. That’s why the news that Heathrow has slipped behind Istanbul in the latest OAG rankings of the world’s best-connected airports – having lost its crown as Europe’s busiest airport to the Turkish rival earlier this summer – should worry anyone who cares about growth.
While we’ve spent the best part of two decades debating a third runway at the UK’s only hub airport, competitors have got on with building. Istanbul’s hub already handles up to 90 million passengers a year, with plans to nearly double that. Closer to home, Paris has expanded Charles de Gaulle to four runways and Amsterdam’s Schiphol now has six. The UK, by contrast, hasn’t built a new full-length runway in or around London since the 1940s.
After decades of dither and delay, we cannot afford to continue to let our overseas rivals steal a march through new facilities and extra capacity. Failing to expand means we go backwards, rather than stand still.
Heathrow makes an important direct economic contribution across the UK, which expansion would bolster. Well over half of its supply chain sits outside the capital and the South-East, which means businesses in Newcastle, Cardiff and Belfast rely on it just as much as firms in the City. The tens of billions in private investment that would pay for a third runway and wider changes to the airport’s infrastructure would be a big shot in the arm to the local, regional and UK economies.
But even more importantly for business, the international connectivity that it provides as the UK’s only hub airport underpins trade, tourism and economic growth. Expansion will unlock new opportunities for London as a global city and for businesses across the economy, which rely on access to overseas markets to cement relationships in a way that simply isn’t possible through email, phone or a Zoom call. To give just one example, Scottish salmon is Heathrow’s biggest export by weight and demand has been growing in Asian markets in recent years.
So the Government must demonstrate the political will to see this project through at pace and unlock the benefits it can provide for passengers, London and the UK. The Chancellor sent a clear signal last week that he stands behind the project. All parts of Whitehall must now pull together in the same direction to meet the ambitious timetable ministers have set for the project – an operational third runway by 2035 – rather than letting it get bogged down by legal and regulatory delays.
We have debated Heathrow’s third runway for too long. It’s time to act to safeguard the UK’s future as a global hub amid intense global competition and surging demand. Expanding Heathrow will send a powerful signal to the world that Britain is open for business and help the economy secure lift-off.