By Gareth Corfield

Copyright yahoo

Labour has given the green light for Gatwick Airport to build a second runway.

Heidi Alexander, the Transport Secretary, granted permission on Sunday for the £2.2bn expansion that will see an extra 100,000 flights per year.

Her decision will be taken as further proof that the Government is overruling those opposed to the expansion of Britain’s airports, whom Ms Alexander referred to earlier this year as “eco-warriors”.

In February, Labour surprised observers by delaying the airport’s expansion, which involves a new second runway being built within its existing grounds.

At the time, Ms Alexander said Gatwick had to do more to address concerns about noise pollution, as well as settle discussions about a legally binding target to increase the proportion of passengers arriving and leaving the airport via public transport.

Those objections have now been dropped after new commitments from Gatwick’s management, The Telegraph understands.

These include airport bosses setting their own targets for the proportion of passengers arriving by train, bus or coach, instead of them being legally enforceable.

Furthermore, those aggrieved by additional noise will be able to request that Gatwick pay for triple-glazed windows.

A minority living directly underneath new flight paths, and who want to sell their homes, will also have their stamp duty met in full, together with estate agent fees up to 1 per cent of the property’s price, as well as any other reasonable moving costs such as removals and storage expenses.

‘No-brainer for growth’

A source close to the discussions suggested it would be impractical for the Government to enforce any legally binding target.

Another said that, with Labour nationalising the railways, any future drop in train passengers to and from the airport would arguably be the Government’s fault.

Currently, Gatwick is the world’s busiest single-runway airport, with a flight taking off or landing every 55 seconds on average. While it already has a second, backup runway, this can only be used if the main runway is closed, because its location is too close.

The expansion plans approved by the Transport Secretary include rebuilding this runway 12 metres to the north, giving the legally required safety distance for it to be used together with the existing main landing strip.

A Government source said: “The Transport Secretary has cleared Gatwick expansion for take-off. With capacity constraints holding back business, trade and tourism, this is a no-brainer for growth.

“This Government has taken unprecedented steps to get this done, navigating a needlessly complex planning system, which our reforms will simplify in future. It is possible that planes could be taking off from a new full runway at Gatwick before the next general election.

“Any airport expansion must be delivered in line with our legally binding climate change commitments and meet strict environmental requirements.”

At a dinner of commercial aviation bosses earlier this year, Ms Alexander signalled that she was on their side, saying she “believes in airport expansion” and was “not some sort of flight-shaming eco-warrior”.