Fighting to ground plans

10:10am Friday 1st February 2008

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I wish to highlight the Green Party's total opposition to the Government's Heathrow expansion plans. These plans, if enacted, will have a detrimental impact on Harrow residents for years to come.

Unfortunately, the Department for Transport's consultation document gives all the appearance of a fait accompli; which literally means, "an action which is completed before those affected by it are in a position to query or reverse it".

Firstly, the Government makes explicit its "support for further development" on grounds of the economy while maintaining that environmental impacts will be minimised.

This makes it quite obvious that short-term economic gain is once again being put ahead of long-term climate change and the immediate loss of Sipson village and local biodiversity.

Secondly, the environmental targets set by this plan look disingenuous at best. The noise condition says "no increase in the size of the area significantly affected".

But this is quite consistent with both increased noise in the pre-existing area and an increased area outside of it actually being affected.

The environment committee at City Hall, chaired by the Green Party, has undertaken its own consultation and will report shortly. Greens locally will also continue to campaign, voluminously, against this ignorant expansion plan.

After all, there is little more ignorant than purporting to acknowledge the threat from climate change, while doing everything in one's power to bring that threat forward. Not even a plane would allow us to escape from a land mass below sea level.

Shahrar Ali
Brent and Harrow constituency candidate for the London Assembly,
Brent Green Party