Boris stays hostile to third runway
Updated on 18 January 2008
Boris Johnson today justified controversial newspaper adverts calling for a planned third runway at Heathrow to be scrapped by describing the airport as a "planning error".
The London mayoral candidate made the claims the day after a plane crash a Heathrow - a near-miss which lead to calls for more capacity at the busy airport.
But today all the main candidates for the London elections took out joint adverts in major newspapers saying plans for an extra runway should be abandoned.
Johnson told Channel 4 News at Noon: "The crash yesterday doesn't really have anything to do with the argument about a third runway.
"Thankfully the pilot did a great job and thankfully there were no injuries.
"Safety is a concern for some people but my concern is about the reduction a quality of life for Londoners - there's going to be an increase of 50 per cent in air traffic because of a third runway "
Watch Boris interview
Watch Boris Johnson's interview with Carl Dinnen on Channel 4 News at Noon here.
Today's controversial newspaper adverts appeared in the Guardian and the Times.
London Chambers of Commerce have attacked Johnson's comments as economically naive.
Johnson added: "My argument is about the impact of a third runway on the lives of millions of people in London.
"What we want is a proper consultation on this - looking at the costs and benefits to London.
"What we don't want to do is entrench a planning error of the 1960s by further expansion at Heathrow.
"We should look at whether there's a solution to the east, in the Thames Estuary. Anything at Heathrow is just compounding a planning error."
