Boris Johnson says Heathrow third runway 'undeliverable'

The Foreign Secretary has accused Theresa May of promising the "undeliverable" as the political fallout begins from the decision to give Heathrow a third runway.

Boris Johnson said expansion at the West London airport would "very likely" be stopped and "the day when the bulldozers appear is a long way off, if indeed they ever materialise".

Tory backbencher Zac Goldsmith, who was also against a third runway, has resigned as an MP after what he described as a "catastrophic" decision.

The move will trigger a by-election in his Richmond Park and North Kingston constituency.

Speaking in the Commons, he said he did not believe the third runway would ever go ahead and that it was "wrong" and "doomed".

Campaigners, including Mr Johnson and London Mayor Sadiq Khan, also warned the legal obstacles to getting the scheme off the ground would stop it going ahead by 2025 - if it ever did.

The Prime Minister was facing a backlash from within her own party including Mr Johnson and Education Secretary Justine Greening, who said it was "disappointing".

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The Government attempted to dampen the blow of it approving the £17.6bn project by attaching conditions including a six and a half hour night-flight ban, more stringent noise conditions and a £2.6bn compensation fund for residents.

Speaking to the Evening Standard after the decision, Mrs May said she wanted the runway delivered "as quickly as possible".

She (Munich: SOQ.MU - news) said: "After decades of delay we are showing that we will take the big decisions when they're the right decisions for Britain, and we will ensure they're right for ordinary working people too.

"Airport expansion is vital for the economic future of the whole of the UK and today also provides certainty to Londoners.

"Businesses will know that we are building the infrastructure they need to access global markets. Ordinary working people will know that my Government backs jobs and growth."

However, Boris Johnson, who along with other members of the Cabinet has been given permission by the PM to speak out against the decision for a limited time, said: "No other great city would do this to its inhabitants.

"New York is going to be the city of beautiful skyscrapers, Paris the city of lights and London in the future, if we go ahead with this project, will be known as the city of planes."

Mr Johnson, who has previously threatened to lie in front of bulldozers rather than let the scheme go ahead, added: "A third runway is undeliverable.

"The day when the bulldozers appear is a long way off, if indeed they ever materialise."

His comments came as the chief executive of Heathrow, John Holland-Kaye, said work on the runway would start in 2021 and would be open for business in 2025.

Business leaders, airlines and unions welcomed the news.

Councils in the areas affected by the expansion have joined forces and announced their intention to launch a judicial review of the decision.

London's mayor has said he will look at the best way to help the legal fight.

Mr Khan said the Government was wrong to choose Heathrow over Gatwick - which he said would have provided extra air capacity for the UK faster, without affecting so many people and provided healthy competition for Heathrow.

He said: "An expanded Gatwick would have boosted our economy without causing these huge air and noise pollution problems and it could be built quicker and cheaper.

"I will continue to challenge this decision and I am exploring how I can best be involved in any legal process over the coming months."

In Harmondsworth, the village where 800 homes will be demolished to make way for the new runway, residents vowed to fight on.

Eilish Stone told Sky News that they had successfully fought plans before in 2009 and would win again this time.

The approval comes six years after the coalition government scrapped plans, following David Cameron's 2009 promise a third runway would never be built "no ifs, no buts".