New airport for the south

A huge new airport is being planned for the South-East to take the pressure off Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted.

Controversial proposals would see a fourth London airport built on an environmentally-sensitive marshland site on the Thames Estuary in Kent.

It would have four runways, and the people behind the scheme say 24-hour flying would be possible because it would be in a less populated area than the capital's other airports.

The plans are with Transport Secretary Stephen Byers and call for the airport to be built on the estuary site at Cliffe, east of Gravesend. The area is in the running because it is large, sparsely populated, close to London, and could be linked by road to the A2/M2 from Dover to London, which joins with the M25 at Dartford, on London's south-eastern edge.

It could also be linked by rail to the main north Kent line running into Cannon Street, London Bridge and Victoria stations, and perhaps to the new Channel tunnel rail link at Ebbsfleet, where a station is planned.

Mr Byers is under intense pressure to increase airport capacity in the South-East amid projections that the level of air traffic will double over the next 20 years.

However, Kent County Council today warned the Government has a fight on its hands, dismissing the idea as an "unrealistic dream". The scheme will also face the fury of the powerful green lobby. The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds describes the Thames as one of Europe's five most important estuaries. It has recently set up a reserve at Cliffe.

The proposal also has cultural implications. The site is close to the cemetery that inspired the scene between Pip and Magwitch in Charles Dickens's Great Expectations. Mr Byers is expected to publish consultation papers in May outlining his plans for air transport changes. While his plans will cover seven regions across the country, the most contentious revolve around the South-East.

Experts believe it unlikely he will accede to the wishes of the airlines, which would like him to sanction a short runway at Heathrow - between the M4 and A4. Insiders at the Department of Transport think an additional site at Heathrow would cause too much noise, pollution and involve the compulsory purchase of hundreds of homes. They are mindful of the long-running protest which dogged the progress of Terminal Five.

If ministers opt for just three extra runways in the South-East, they are more likely to choose two at Stansted and one at Gatwick, or two at Gatwick and one at Stansted.

Expanding Gatwick would involve circumventing an undertaking to councils by BAA, the airport operator, not to consider a second runway until 2019 - but transport officials believe that can be achieved.

However, Sandy Bruce Lockhart, leader of Kent County Council, has already told the Government that any development in his area should be at Manston, the former RAF base near Ramsgate, which already has a runway capable of handling transatlantic flights.

Manston is further from London but is linked by the A2/M2, and it might be possible to build a link to the Channel tunnel rail line at Ashford.

The Department of Transport said "all sorts of options are being looked at in the South East", but refused to say if Cliffe was a likely site for the new airport.