R4U supports High Court challenge by Uttlesford District Council to prevent ‘climate killing’ Stansted Airport expansion

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Residents for Uttlesford (R4U) has supported Uttlesford District Council’s decision to seek High Court action to challenge the Stansted Airport expansion appeal decisions.

John Lodge (R4U) John Lodge (R4U)

R4U’s Cllr John Lodge, who is Leader of Uttlesford District Council, said “The UDC officer and legal team believe that they have grounds to mount a High Court challenge to the proposed Stansted Airport expansion. We are hopeful that the courts will grant permission to quash the government Planning Inspectors’ decisions. In addition as Leader of the Council I have written to the Secretaries of State for Communities and Transport to provide the legal basis on which they can intervene to revoke the permission and urge that they do so.”

Cllr Lodge continued “Respected environmental campaigners such as Sir David Attenborough have made it clear we must all act on Climate Change to protect our planet. Uttlesford District Council is not alone in trying to deal with these complex issues. Local authorities in Southampton, Bristol and other parts of the country are all trying to force their local commercial airport operators to meet their environmental obligations.”

Dan Starr (R4U Chair) Dan Starr (R4U Chair)

R4U party chair Dan Starr added “We fully back a High Court challenge. In our manifesto we promised to ‘take action on climate change’ and committed to ‘striking a fairer deal with Stansted Airport’ to balance employment with their responsibilities to the environment and surrounding villages. Analysis has shown that in terms of emissions this expansion would be the equivalent of putting a climate-killing 1.8m cars on the roads. The airport is not a public service; it is a for-profit commercial business and has corporate responsibilities. It is a good local employer that can provide more local jobs without expanding. Any further expansion must be halted until it can show it meets its environmental obligations under the UK’s new 6th Carbon Budget law. That requires emissions to be reduced to below 1990 levels.”

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About Residents for Uttlesford

Residents for Uttlesford (R4U) is the local independent party of north-west Essex towns and villages. It believes that on local issues residents should decide, not Westminster parties. R4U’s success has been based on the desire to give local people a voice and implement long range strategic and sustainable plans for where they live. It has turned around both councils it has been elected to lead to make them now multi award-winning.

R4U leads Uttlesford District Council (UDC). In its first election in 2015 it became the second party at UDC. In May 2019, it gained majority control of the authority by inflicting the biggest loss of seats on any Conservative controlled council in the UK. In May 2023, R4U retained control of UDC.

R4U also leads Saffron Walden Town Council, where under its stewardship the council since 2015 it has rebuilt finances, invested in community assets, and won multiple awards, including the best run council in Essex.

Residents for Uttlesford can be found on the web at www.residents4u.org.

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