With many residents writing to Munira to complain about Heathrow noise and pollution, Munira continues to fight against third runway proposals that would make aircraft noise and pollution much worse.
Munira wrote to the new Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, and also spoke on a panel at the Community Conversation hosted by Richmond Council. Munira has urged residents to respond to the Government consultation (the Heathrow Expansion National Policy Statement), which closes on 1 September 2026 (respond to the consultation here).
In her letter to the Prime Minister, Munira pointed to the growing body of evidence showing that the economic case for Heathrow expansion has crumbled, with the previous Government’s own growth projections from a third runway downgraded by 90%. Moreover, the paltry growth would be concentrated in London and the Southeast, with a detrimental effect on regional growth, something Andy Burnham is rightly passionate about. You can read the letter here.
Munira has also pointed to the environmental implications of Heathrow expansion. Raging fires across Europe, and here in the UK, have highlighted the urgent need to heed the alarm bells sounded by the climate emergency.
Heathrow is already the single largest polluter in the UK, and a third runway would see flight numbers increase by hundreds of thousands of flights a year. A third runway would add an estimated nine million tonnes of carbon annually, pushing aviation alone to account for up to 25% of UK emissions by 2050.
Munira said: “Europe is the world’s fastest warming continent. Adding to carbon emissions that would make the climate emergency even worse would be absolute madness. This is not to mention the terrible impact on people’s health from air and noise pollution.”
At the recent Community Conversation event on Heathrow expansion hosted by Richmond Council, Munira and other panellists discussed how a third runway could impact people’s health, our precious environment and taxpayers’ pockets. Other panellists included Cllr Gareth Roberts, Leader of Richmond Council; Cllr Julia Neden-Watts; Cllr Phil Giesler; Richmond Park MP Sarah Olney; Brentford and Isleworth MP Ruth Cadbury; and representatives from the No Third Runway coalition. Read more here.
The consensus from the over 200 residents who joined the meeting was a resounding “No” to Heathrow expansion.
Don’t forget to have your say in the consultation here!