Government has leaked Third Runway Plans to Ferovia

>From The Times

June 6, 2007

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/politics/article1890224.ece

'Secret pact' over Heathrow's third runway

Ben Webster, Transport Correspondent

The Government is facing calls for an investigation into allegations
that it is colluding with BAA, the airport operator, over plans to
build a third runway at Heathrow and allow an extra 500 flights a day
over London.

The Department for Transport has secretly passed key information
supporting the expansion to the Spanish-owned company six months
before it is due to be published in a consultation document.

The department has also allowed senior BAA officials to influence a
series of tests designed to show whether the third runway would breach
limits on air pollution and noise.

The Times has learnt that BAA has a team of 34 people working with
civil servants, influencing the tests so that they find in favour of
building the new runway. The department has given BAA a full copy of
the preliminary results but is refusing to allow any opponents of the
expansion to see them.

Mike Forster, BAA's head of strategy for Heathrow, admitted at a
recent conference that he had seen the results and that they were
"encouraging".

Ferrovial, the Madrid-based construction company that paid £10 billion
for BAA last August, is counting on the third runway being approved to
make a substantial profit on its investment.

A group of 12 local authorities in and around London that oppose the
third runway has written this week to Sir Gus O'Donnell, the Cabinet
Secretary, asking him to investigate whether the department has
breached the Civil Service code.

Edward Lister, leader of Wandsworth council and spokesman for the
group, said: "This looks like a very serious case of collusion between
a government department and a private company that stands to gain
massively from expanding Heathrow.

"The Government now runs the risk that the results of its air
pollution studies will be tainted.

"The air pollution work is being paid for with public money. Giving
the results first to BAA gives them an unfair head start on everyone
else."

The Government is planning to publish a consultation document in the
autumn that will state that a third runway would, subject to certain
conditions, pass the pollution and noise tests.

BAA hopes to submit a planning application for the runway next year
and to open it by 2017. A new flight path would be created over Acton,
Chiswick and Fulham and up to 700 homes, including eight Grade II
listed buildings, would have to be demolished to make way for the
runway and a terminal.

A BAA spokesman said that the company was supplying the department
with information about options for reducing pollution and noise, such
as using more modern aircraft, getting more people to travel to
Heathrow by public transport and changing the location and design of
the proposed terminal.

He added: "If we had not seen the results we would be operating in the
dark. If you don't see them, how do you know how to change the
scenario?"

A department spokesman said: "We are working with BAA on the project.
It wouldn't be sensible or indeed possible to do the work without the
expertise of the airport operator."

John Stewart, chairman of ClearSkies, which campaigns on behalf of
people living under Heathrow's flight paths, said: "We were promised
an independent study on the pollution issue but it appears to be a one-
sided process tipped in favour of BAA's expansion plans."

date: Fri, 10 Aug 2007 02:12:06 -0700 author: SB