Healey backs Heathrow third runway as Burnham stays silent — SkimNews
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- John Healey said there is a "pro-growth case" for a third runway at Heathrow, striking a "markedly more positive note" than Andy Burnham, who has "ducked the issue" since arriving in No 10 in July.
- A Sunday Times report suggested Andy Burnham told transport secretary Heidi Alexander he was "unconvinced" by arguments for the megaproject.
- Heathrow CEO Thomas Woldbye warned that investors "cannot wait for ever" and that shareholders would reassess their backing for the £33bn project without the prime minister's support.
- Heathrow's owners — Qatar's investment authority, France's Ardian, Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, and Singapore's GIC — are expected to decide in the coming months whether to apply for formal planning permission.
- Healey, who voted in favour of the third runway when the question was put to the House of Commons in 2018, attended IMF annual meetings in Bangkok before returning to finalize his 28 October budget.
Why it matters: Healey's pro-growth endorsement edges the government toward backing Heathrow's £33bn third runway ahead of his 28 October budget, where IMF managing director Kristalina Georgieva urged him to "stay the course" on deficit cutting. But without prime-ministerial backing, CEO Thomas Woldbye has warned the airport's sovereign-wealth shareholders — from Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, and France — could reassess their commitment to the project.
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