British Supreme Court gives go-ahead to Heathrow expansion.

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5 years ago

Britain’s Supreme Court gave go-ahead to Heathrow Airport expansion on Wednesday, allowing the 14 billion pound ($19 billion) plan to go ahead after decades of legal battles and political disputes.

The Supreme Court ruling overturned an earlier court decision that had blocked the plan for environmental reasons, Reuters reported.

Heathrow, Britain’s largest airport, is poised to move forward despite the drop in air traffic during the COVID-19 pandemic, which has seen it lose its crown as Europe’s busiest hub.

In February, a court declared the expansion illegal, ruling in favor of climate change advocates. The judge had said that the failure to take into account the British government’s climate change commitments was “legally fatal” to the plans.

But a High Court judge said in a virtual session Wednesday that the government had taken into account the climate change commitments when designing its airport policy.

“For these reasons, the Court unanimously concludes that the appeal should be allowed. The national airport policy statement is legal,” said Justice Philip Sales.

The airport is owned by Spain’s Ferrovial, the Qatar Investment Authority and China Investment Corp, among others.

By Sarah Young