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Government Majority Slashed by Two Thirds on Heathrow

 

29.1.2009  (Hacan)

Biggest rebellion on an opposition motion since Labour came to power in 1997

At the end of the debate in the House of Commons yesterday on Heathrow expansion the Government’s majority was slashed by two-thirds.  It scraped home by a mere 19 votes.  If 8 Democratic Unionists had voted with the opposition parties instead of the Government, Labour’s majority would have been down to one.  As it was, this was the biggest rebellion on an opposition motion since Labour came to power in 1997.

Two Labour MPs, Andy Slaughter and Virendra Sharma, resigned from their junior ministerial posts in opposition to the Government’s plans for a 3rd runway.

John Stewart, the Chair of HACAN, said, “This vote is another nail in the coffin for the Government’s plans to build a 3rd runway.  It becomes less likely by the day that the runway will ever be built.”

 

ENDS

Notes for Editors:

(1).  The London and South East Labour MPs who voted against the Government were Diane Abbott, Harry Cohen, Jeremy Corbyn, Frank Dobson, Kate Hoey, John McDonnell, Andrew Mackinlay, Bob Marshall-Andrews, Nick Raynsford, Martin Salter, Virendra Sharma, Andrew Slaughter and Andrew Smith.
 
 
 
(for full list of Labour MPs who voted against the Government, see below, and the for wording of the motion)
 

The Hansard report on the Heathrow debate is at:

http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200809/cmhansrd/cm090128/debtext/90128-0004.htm#09012857000001

 

List of MPs contributions to the debate at:

http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200809/cmhansrd/cm090128/debindx/90128-x.htm

 

 

Details of how MPs voted  at  (down at the bottom):

http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200809/cmhansrd/cm090128/debtext/90128-0022.htm#09012867001331

 

 

see also

 

Government scrapes home in Heathrow expansion vote

The Government narrowly won a vote on the controversial 3rd runway at Heathrow on Wednesday after a ministerial aide quit in disgust over the plan.  The debate saw a series of protests from Labour backbenchers.  The government's majority of 63 was cut to 19 (297 votes to 278)  in a Commons vote after Andrew Slaughter resigned as a PPS. After the vote Labour MP Virendra Sharma quit an unpaid government post to fight the plans. 57 Labour MPs had previously signed EDM 2344, of whom 28 voted for the Conservative motion. (BBC and Telegraph)  28.1.2009  More .....
 
 
 
 
In full: Heathrow rebel MPs
 
The government has won a vote on its plans to build a third runway at Heathrow airport but saw its majority cut to 19.

A total of 28 Labour MPs rebelled to vote for a Conservative/Lib Dem motion urging the government to "rethink" its plans. They were: 

 
(from the BBC)
 
 
No Tories defied the whip.
 
 
The wording of the motion, put by Teresa Villiers, was:
 
"That this House urges the Government to rethink its plans for a third runway at Heathrow Airport and to give full consideration to alternative solutions; regrets the Government’s heavy reliance on data supplied by BAA in assessing the case for expansion and notes the likely forthcoming break-up of BAA’s ownership of three of 5 London’s airports following the investigation by the Competition Commission; believes that the consultation paper Adding Capacity at Heathrow Airport was deeply flawed, as it paid insufficient regard to the costs of air and noise pollution in the surrounding areas and the commitment to curb carbon dioxide emissions to tackle climate change; regrets the fact that provisions to improve high-speed rail lines from 10 Heathrow to major cities have not been fully explored, along with the potential of other UK airports to handle more long-haul flights; and urges the Government to initiate a consultation on a new national planning policy statement on the theme of airports and high-speed rail."
 
which was lifted verbatim from early-day motion 2344 in 2008.
 
 
 
The 29 Labour MPs who signed the EDM, but did not actually vote in favour of the motion, were:
 
Austin, John
Bayley, Hugh
Berry, Roger
Caton, Martin
Challen, Colin
Chaytor, David
Clwyd, Ann
Cruddas, Jon
Cryer, Ann
Dean, Janet
Gerrard, Neil
Godsiff, Roger
Hamilton, Fabian
Heyes, David
Illsley, Eric
Keen, Alan
Linton, Martin
McCafferty, Chris
Murphy, Denis
Olner, Bill
Palmer, Nick
Riordan, Linda
Soulsby, Peter
Stoate, Howard
Taylor, David
Thornberry, Emily
Tipping, Paddy
Truswell, Paul
Turner, Desmond
Vis, Rudi

 

 

 

 

  
  
  

 

(29th January 2009)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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