The Airports Commission has published its ‘summary of non-technical responses to the Airports Commission’s Emerging Thinking Consultation’. The consultation elicited over one hundred responses from a wide range of stakeholders. Eighty-five technical responses were received from institutions and members of the public. Technical responses have been published in full here.
The remainder of the responses (23 in total) were largely non-technical. These were all received from members of the public. The majority voiced opposition to airport proposals and particularly those schemes which proposed development within the Thames Estuary region. The non-technical responses are summarised in the following nine groups.
1. Opposing Thames Estuary and Hoo Peninsula developments.
2. Opposing developments at Heathrow Airport.
3. Promoting development at Manston Airport.
4. Promoting development of RAF Lyneham.
5. Opposing development at Bristol Airport; promoting development at Exeter or Cardiff Airports.
6. Supporting the linking of the High Speed 2 Rail scheme with a hub airport in the Midlands region of England.
7. General support for non-specified additional runway in the South East of England.
8. Opposing any additional airports.
9. Questions whether the Airports Commission is applying sufficient consideration to noise.