London Assembley wants government to extend deadline for discussing plans to expand Heathrow airport

The London Assembly has unanimously called on the government to extend the consultation period for the Heathrow expansion proposals.

Proposing the motion Richard Barnes, assembly member for Ealing and Hillingdon, said: 鈥淓xpansion at Heathrow is such a key issue for so many Londoners 鈥� the consultation process must be fair, open and incorporate as many people as possible.

鈥淥nly 300,000 people have been consulted and there are many more residents directly affected by the proposed flight paths who have not yet had their say. An extension of the consultation period will give more people the opportunity to participate.鈥�

In November last year the government launched a public consultation on the controversial plans to expand the airport. It officially ended on 27 February.

The plans would mean a third runway and a new passenger terminal by around 2020.

The expansion would allow Heathrow to increase its passenger capacity from the annual figure of 95 million anticipated after the opening of Terminal 5, to 135 million by 2030.

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