Protesters amazed at councils Coventry airport U-turn
02.07.05
Officials at Warwick District Council now back Coventry Airport's Thomsonfly terminal - to the disbelief of campaigners.
Warwick District Council strongly opposed the development for 18 months and threatened to demolish it, claiming the building did not have planning permission. Its objections led to a costly court battle and the current inquiry into the terminal's legality, which will land taxpayers with a bill for hundreds of thousands of pounds. But following assurances from the airport's managers to limit the operation's effects on the environment, council officers are now convinced the building should stay and should be granted planning permission.
Head of Planning John Archer has asked councillors to support the development on Monday, and outlines his case in a report to the meeting. The report states the decision should be taken 'on the basis that this offer brings a measure of control over the environmental impact of Coventry airport, where none exists at present.' It also says that 'the package of mitigation and compensation measures are considered reasonable.'
The move has alarmed Warwick and Leamington MP James Plaskitt, who has been a long-standing critic of the airport. 'The papers read like a preparation for defeat. While the arguments are still being fought out in a public inquiry, work is going on to prepare the terms for surrender,' he said.
Campaign Against Expansion at Coventry Airport spokesman Archy Muir believes the potential price of the district council's continued opposition has forced it into a u-turn. 'Since March 2004, and throughout the public inquiry, the airport's lawyers have frequently made threats to pursue cost claims against the district council. We believe that these threats have made the officers willing to bend over backwards to demonstrate how reasonably they were behaving towards the airport. Sadly this has now caused them to fall over,' he said.
'They are now recommending planning permission for the terminal in return for a 'mitigation and compensation' package which appears to be little more than 'smoke and mirrors'. But we put our faith in the good sense of the planning committee councillors, and we look to them to reject the officers' recommendations,' he added.
However, even if the councillors agree that permission for the current terminal and a new permanent terminal should be granted, they do not have power to grant permission. Coventry airport's future is in the hands of deputy Prime Minister John Prescott, who will decide whether to allow the current structure to stay after reading a report compiled by inspectors at the end of the current inquiry. His decision is not expected before 2006, and will have to take into account the views of residents and pressure groups opposed to the development.
The planning committee meeting will take place at Leamington town hall on Monday at 18:00. It will also decide whether to grant permission for a 2,000-space airport car park (see this earlier coventry airport news story).
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