John Healey has said there is a pro-growth case for going ahead with a third runway at Heathrow despite the prime minister declining to back it.
Healey’s predecessor as chancellor, Rachel Reeves, put approval of the long-planned runway at the heart of her “growth speech” last year, saying it would “make Britain the world’s best-connected place to do business”.
However, since arriving in No 10 in July, Andy Burnham has ducked the issue of whether the runway should go ahead, suggesting it should be “a matter for London and Londoners”.
A recent Sunday Times report suggested the prime minister had told the transport secretary, Heidi Alexander, that he was “unconvinced” by arguments for the megaproject.
Asked for his views in Bangkok this week, Healey said the government would study responses to a public consultation, which recently closed. He appeared to strike a markedly more positive note than Burnham, however.
“I think in recent decades, and this is true in Heathrow and airports right across the UK, that they have been a big part of jobs and growth. And the case for a third runway at Heathrow has always been a case for growth,” he said.
Healey has insisted economic growth is his and Burnham’s “number one mission” in government.
Heathrow’s chief executive, Thomas Woldbye, has warned that investors could reassess their backing for the £33bn infrastructure project if it does not receive the prime minister’s support.
“Our shareholders would like to do this,” he said earlier this week. “They do think that things are taking a long time, and so far they have decided to be OK with that … But of course we cannot wait for ever.”
The airport’s owners include Qatar’s investment authority; the French private equity firm Ardian; Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund and Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund, GIC. They are expected to decide in the coming months whether to apply for formal planning permission.
Healey voted in favour of the third runway when the question was put to the House of Commons in 2018.
The chancellor was in Bangkok to attend the International Monetary Fund annual meetings but has returned to London to put the finishing touches to his 28 October budget.
The UK was praised by the IMF this week for taking action to cut its deficit, while other large economies have opted not to do so. The IMF’s managing director, Kristalina Georgieva, urged Healey to “stay the course” in his budget.
On Thursday, official figures showed the UK economy unexpectedly continued to grow in August.
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