I have been keeping a close eye on Heathrow’s expansion plans, and particularly on their assurances to Elmbridge residents. Since summer last year, I have been urging Heathrow to include local authorities – and specifically Elmbridge Borough Council – on the body which will be responsible for policing and enforcing its compliance with noise, air quality and traffic limits as the airport expands.
This body, the Independent Scrutiny Panel (ISP), is important because it will have the power to require Heathrow to modify its behaviour if it breaches its limits in any of the above areas. It gives teeth to the compliance arrangements.
I believe that Elmbridge residents should have the reassurance of knowing that their local authority has a direct role in the monitoring and enforcement of Heathrow’s environmental limits. So I am pleased that Elmbridge Borough Council has, following my representations, now made a formal request to Heathrow for a role on the ISP.
I will press Heathrow to make this common-sense change when it submits its application for planning consent later this year.
(Photo of Dominic and local councillors engaging with Heathrow’s initial expansion proposals in 2018)
