17 November 2008 - The South East’s Green MEP has highlighted the urgent need to protect Gatwick’s environmental heritage and tackle rising noise and air pollution at a public meeting of a local community group.

A long time campaigner against further airport expansion in the UK, Dr Caroline Lucas MEP joined residents and local councillors at the annual public meeting of the Gatwick Area Conservation Campaign to debate the Government’s commitment to airport expansion and call for better measures to reduce noise and carbon emissions.

Dr Lucas, who is also the Leader of the Green Party, said: "With climate emissions from air travel at an all time high, the Government is living in a fantasy land if it thinks it can allow aviation to grow at an alarming rate, while also committing to huge cuts in greenhouse gas emissions.

"The effects of the proposed airport expansion on those living in the Gatwick area and in the South East, let alone the toll on the environment, are clearly less important to Gordon Brown than meeting the expressed needs of the aviation sector.

"The political tug-of-war over a third runway at Heathrow is indicative of this Government’s failure to translate its rhetoric on climate change into action.

"Furthermore, at a time of global economic downturn and a reduction in flight sales, the economic benefits of expansion are in themselves highly questionable. More capacity at the South East’s airports does not make economic or environmental sense.

She concluded: "What we need is more investment in our public transport system and the strengthening of high-speed rail links to the rest of Europe to reduce short haul flights."

Dr Lucas has led efforts in the European Parliament to strengthen the Emissions Trading Scheme and force airlines to pay more for their permits to pollute the atmosphere.

ENDS

Notes to Editors

To find out more about GACC, please visit http://www.gacc.org.uk