Heathrow (Third Runway)

The hon. Gentleman is quite right. While we are talking about Gatwick, let me make it absolutely clear that we Liberal Democrat Members are totally opposed to any further expansion of airport capacity in the south-east, and in the term ““south-east”” I include Gatwick, Stansted and Heathrow. The Government waved away the comments of Chris Smith—Lord Smith, who is now chairman of the Environment Agency. He was of course a former Labour party spokesman on the environment, and was well-respected in that capacity. He said on 27 January—not very long ago—that Heathrow expansion is ““a mistake””; those are his words. He said that there was ““a very big chance”” that the project would stall owing to the threat of legal action from campaigners and resistance from Opposition parties. I can confirm that the last part of that point is certainly true. He also said:"““I think the likelihood is that engines will get cleaner, whether they will get cleaner as rapidly as the government projects I have my doubts.””" He made sensible objections, on behalf of the Environment Agency, to the Government's policy on a third runway. Will the Government formally respond to the Environment Agency, or does that advisory body matter only when it is in line with Government policy, and is it to be discarded and ignored when it is out of line with it? That appears to be the Government's attitude.