Leeds Bradford Airport scraps expansion plans amid climate crisis concerns

Plans to massively expand one of the north’s busiest airports have been dropped following major protests about the possible climate ramifications.

Proposals for a new £150m terminal at Leeds Bradford Airport had previously been called in for a public inquiry by government inspectors.

But bosses now say they have spiked the plans because of the “excessive delays” that would be caused.

The massive 34,000 square metre facility would have paved the way for some 3 million more air passengers a year at the West Yorkshire hub, turning it into the second busiest airport in the north.

But campaigners – which included more than 75 separate climate groups and resident associations, as well as local MPs – said the expansion was entirely at odds with the UK’s pledge to tackle the climate crisis.

Reacting to the dropping of the plans, Chris Foren, chair of the Group for Action on Leeds Bradford Airport said it was a “victory for climate and communities”.

He said: “We are delighted that LBA has acknowledged defeat. It means that LBA cannot extend daytime flying hours nor remove night time flying controls. As they said in their own planning application, this means they don't have the capacity to increase passenger numbers above 5 million a year.

“Make no mistake, this victory is down to the thousands of people who took action, donated funds and never gave up hope that we can make the right decisions today to build a better tomorrow.”

Alex Sobel, Labour MP For Leeds North West, also said he was “pleased” at the decision.

“From the start this was always about increasing passenger numbers and carbon emissions not getting a new building,” he said. “I hope the airport will enter discussions about reducing aviation emissions now.”

Vincent Hodder, the airport’s chief executive, said the decision had been taken “with regret” – but he said he still hoped the hub would double its passenger numbers in the coming years.

He said the existing terminal would be expanded – as per a pre-existing planning application – to make it capable of accepting 7 million passengers a year.

“If we take the approvals that we already have and work with those in a really creative way, we’re able to move forward from now with certainty and deliver exactly what our customers need which is a modern decarbonised airport with the capacity for 7 million passengers,” he said.

He added that the current runway was only operating at 15 per cent its maximum capacity so, if the existing terminal was expanded, there would still be more opportunities for more flights.