A minister was heavily criticised for appearing to brush aside a warning from Britain’s climate watchdog on pressing ahead with a third runway at Heathrow.
Local energy minister Martin McCluskey seemed to dismiss a damning verdict by the UK’s Climate Change Committee on expanding the west London airport.
The Government’s global warming advisers stressed there is “no credible pathway” for the proposed third runway within the UK’s legally-binding climate targets under current policies for cutting aviation emissions.
The independent advisory committee also warned that the UK “does not have a credible plan to reduce” aviation emissions, posing a serious challenge to meeting the climate goals.
But asked about this authoritative assessment, Mr McCluskey told Times Radio: “Look, I've got a lot of time and respect for the Climate Change Committee, but their advice is exactly that.
“It is advice.”
He argued that improvements in aviation technology and greater use of sustainable aviation fuel, both long-promised, would reduce emissions.
But Twickenham MP Munira Wilson slammed his stance.
"Today, Government ministers said the quiet part out loud - they don't take climate change seriously,” she told The Standard.
“By turning a deaf ear to the Climate Change Committee's warnings and pursuing Heathrow expansion regardless, the Government is making a mockery of our rightly ambitious climate commitments."
The CCC had warned that Heathrow expansion should not go ahead unless the aviation industry is forced to clean up its climate emissions.
The cost of international flights might have to increase by hundreds of pounds by 2050, to pay for measures that will help the airline sector cut its carbon pollution to zero overall, known as net zero, it said.
However, Chancellor John Healey last week gave full backing to a third runway at Heathrow, which will cost an estimated £49 billion, once terminal area improvements, moving the M25 and other investment are included.
The expansion would aim to increase the airport’s capacity to 756,000 flights and 150 million passengers a year.
Prime Minister Andy Burnham has previously expressed concerns over the expansion, and it has long been opposed by climate experts and Mayor of London Lord Sadiq Khan.
Airlines have also warned that they and passengers face being left to pick up the bill for the most expensive airport expansion scheme ever.
Climate Change Committee chairman Nigel Topping stressed that emissions from flying had doubled in the UK since 1990, even as overall climate pollution had halved, and Heathrow was responsible for around half of the sector’s emissions.
By 2050, aviation emissions will dwarf all other parts of the economy, and Heathrow expansion alone would produce more emissions than any other sector.
Mr Topping added: “Every tonne of greenhouse gas emissions contributes to climate change and its impacts, of which we’ve seen stark evidence with the extreme weather this summer.
“Expansion cannot mean more climate pollution.”
Heathrow argued that a third runway could boost economic growth while also “delivering” on net zero.
A spokesperson said: “We will continue working with Government and partners across the aviation sector to ramp up today’s proven technologies, while examining options for how the billions of pounds passengers already pay in carbon taxes can be used to support this.”
The Government has set four “tests” for a third runway on climate change, air pollution, noise and economic growth.
A Department for Transport spokesperson said: “We’re investing £219 million in sustainable aviation fuel production and a further £43 million in cleaner technologies to support greener aviation.
“Expansion could deliver around £40 billion to the economy and support up to 60,000 local jobs.”
