British Chancellor Rachel Reeves said the drive for growth “trumps” the government's net zero commitments as she prepares for show her support for airport expansion in the London region, including Heathrow Airport.
In his speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, the chancellor called growth United Kingdom the government's “number one mission”.
Asked what she would do if faced with a choice between economic growth and Britain's net zero target by 2050, Reeves said: “If that's mission number one, it's obviously the most important thing.”
Her comments come as the government considers plans to support expansion for Luton and Gatwick airports and also decides whether to signal its approval for a controversial third runway at Heathrow.
The prospect of Heathrow expansion threatens to split the cabinet and force the government to choose between its stated goals of boosting growth and reducing the UK's carbon emissions.
The chancellor said on Wednesday that the government had already signed off on the expansion of City and Stansted airports, which also serve the UK capital, signaling “this government's commitment to making Britain an important trading country”.
Speaking earlier at the Davos event, Reeves said: “When we say growth is the number one mission of this government, we mean it. That means it will outperform other things.”
In a speech next week, he is expected to indicate the government's preference for expanding Gatwick and Luton airports, while reaffirming his support for a third runway at Heathrow.
Heathrow expansion has previously been opposed by Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and several senior Labor leaders.
Some Whitehall officials believe Reeves is trying to dissuade Starmer from publicly supporting a third runway. “That's not my assessment,” said one ally of the prime minister.
Asked about the issue in the House of Commons on Wednesday, Starmer declined to comment on the “speculation”, adding: “As a government we are committed to growth. We are committed to the aviation sector and our climate commitments.”
Reeves' support for Heathrow's third runway could be the political signal the airport authority needs before deciding whether to press ahead with the proposals this year – it has been reluctant to revive the plan without clear political backing.
The chief executive of the owner of British Airways said on Wednesday that he will not support Heathrow expansion unless the government changes the way landing charges are set.
Luis Gallego, chief executive of International Airlines Group, said Heathrow's regulatory model was “not fit for purpose”, pointing to high landing charges, which alone in the UK collects charges at UK airports from its airlines.
“The government has a growth agenda and we support it. . . but before we talk about expanding or rebuilding Heathrow, the situation at Heathrow has to change,” he told an industry event.
Britain's aviation regulator last year forced Heathrow to reduce those charges slightly to £23.73 per passenger for 2025, but both sides were unhappy.
BA is by far the largest airline at Heathrow thanks to its historic rights to more than 50 per cent of the airport's landing slots. This allowed the airline to build a highly profitable business, especially in transatlantic flying. Analysts believe any major expansion of Heathrow could hurt BA if its rivals gain more slots at the airport.
Reeves said on Wednesday that any approval of the Heathrow scheme would have “collective cabinet agreement”.
In the last House of Commons vote on a third runway at Heathrow in 2018, seven members of the current cabinet voted against, including Starmer. The others were Ed Miliband, Steve Reed, Lisa Nandy, Darren Jones, Anneliese Dodds and Hilary Benn.
Miliband, who is now climate change secretary, threatened to resign over the issue during Gordon Brown's government, while London mayor Sir Sadiq Khan remains opposed.
A spokesman for Khan said this week: “The Mayor has a long-standing opposition to expanding airports around London – linked to the negative impact on air quality, noise and London's ability to achieve net zero by 2030.”
Critics say the expansion is incompatible with the UK's legally binding goal of net zero carbon emissions, with aviation one of the most difficult industries to decarbonise – despite growing hopes for the use of “sustainable jet fuel”.
Downing Street said this week it still required a third runway at Heathrow to meet its four tests on carbon emissions, noise, air quality and growth. The problems of local noise and air pollution are considered by experts to be the most difficult to face in congested west London.
Meanwhile, Reeves, who spent Wednesday meeting with bankers and investors in Davos, reiterated her support for aggressive deregulation and the need to clear the way for more construction.
“There's always a reason not to invest, not to build,” she said. “There are bats and newts. In 20 years, it could add something to carbon emissions.”
Reeves is trying to reassure businesses that the UK has a clear plan for growth after a devastating sell-off in government bonds this month.
She also promised to explore routes for highly skilled workers to come to the UK as the country looks to attract talented individuals in sectors such as artificial intelligence and life sciences.
The government is also preparing a Planning and Infrastructure Bill to speed up projects by making it harder for protesters to secure multiple judicial reviews of the same case.
The legislation will create a new “nature restoration fund” to allow developers to meet environmental commitments more quickly to speed up house building, and will include measures to speed up project sign-offs under the Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects regime by reducing paperwork.
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