I will not resign over Heathrow expansion

Energy Security and Net Zero Secretary Ed Miliband has said he will not resign if the Government supports a third runway at Heathrow Airport, despite being a long-time opponent of it.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves is expected to give a speech on the development next week to announce approval for a new runway at Heathrow, and the Treasury is also considering whether a second runway at Gatwick and increased capacity at Luton Airport should be supported.

Miliband told the Press Association news agency that ministers could deliver their growth and net-zero missions at the same time.

Asked whether he would step down if a third Heathrow runway was given the go-ahead, he said: “Don’t be ridiculous, no.”

In 2009, Miliband was widely reported to have threatened to resign from Gordon Brown’s Cabinet over Heathrow expansion plans.

Speaking on Thursday, he said the government’s position is that any aviation expansion must remain within the UK’s carbon budget, which is part of a plan to meet a 2050 target of reducing emissions 100% compared to 1990 levels. Is part of.

Independent government advisers to the Committee on Climate Change (CCC) have warned that there should be no net airport expansion without a proper national plan to curb emissions from the sector and manage passenger capacity.

Miliband insisted that this was “absolutely the government’s position”.

“We believe we can meet our growth mission – our number one priority – and stay within the carbon budget, and indeed our clean energy mission is critical and a central part of delivering our growth mission. Is part of.

He argued, “Far from being contradictory, they are absolutely complementary.”

Asked whether the country could still meet net zero with a third Heathrow runway, he replied: “I’m not going to get into speculation about specific issues like that.

“What I’m saying is that aviation is part of our economic development and it needs to be within our carbon budget, and it’s accepted by the government because we have a legally binding carbon budget.”

Chancellor Rachel Reeves speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland on Wednesday Signaled its intention to support the expansion of Heathrow and Gatwick airports In an effort to promote economic growth, despite environmental concerns shared by many prominent Labor figures.

“We will look at all the plans to bring infrastructure to Britain, to bring investment.

“When there are decisions about investment in infrastructure, the answer can’t always be ‘no’ and in this government the answer is ‘yes’,” Reeves told the BBC.

The idea of ​​building a third runway at Heathrow has been hotly debated for nearly 20 years.

It has been consistently supported by aviation industry and business leaders – and opposed by environmental groups – but has been stalled by major differences on the issue within both the Labor and Conservative parties.

Sir Keir Starmer and seven ministers in his cabinet – including Miliband and Environment Secretary Steve Reid – voted against the proposal when it was brought forward by Theresa May’s government in 2018.

His then Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson – a former Mayor of London and a long-time critic of the third runway – Traveled to Afghanistan on the day of the Commons voteDue to which allegations started rising that he had deliberately missed it.

The current Labor mayor of London, Sir Sadiq Khan, who won a third term in 2024 on a platform of opposing airport expansion in the capital, told the London Assembly that views “haven’t changed”.

He said that although the aviation sector is vital for growth, jobs and prosperity, “we are facing a climate crisis and a climate emergency.”

If Heathrow’s expansion were approved, “could a new runway be built that complied with carbon targets, concerns about noise pollution, and concerns about air pollution?” he asked.

“Should this speculation become reality, we will certainly consider the merits of that case,” he said.

“But I am absolutely clear, my views on the expansion of Heathrow have not been changed by the new runway.”