Helene was at this morning's environment committee meeting. She writes:
Boris Johnson's plans to build a new airport in the Thames estuary could weaken a legal challenge against expansion of Heathrow he is helping to fund, it was claimed today. Stephen Knight, a representative from the 2M coalition of 22 local authorities opposed to a third runway at Heathrow, said a legal challenge based on the detrimental environmental impact could be undermined by the mayor of London's plan for another airport.
This exposes the fault lines in any all-party coalition opposed to Heathrow expansion. Knight is a Lib Dem Councillor in Richmond, and ran unsuccessfully against iincumbent Tony Arbour for the South-West assembly seat last year. He's not the only Lib Dem from those parts at odds with the mayor over this issue. Richmond MP Susan Kramer, a long-term opponent of expansion, will have a hard fight against her Conservative challenger at the next election. His name? Zach Goldsmith, the mayor's fellow panelist at last month's unofficial Tory rally in Hayes. Which matters most to Boris, reducing C02 emissions or increasing the Conservative vote?
