Justine Greening is Conservative MP for Putney, and has been a vocal critic of a Heathrow 3rd runway for a long time. She quit the Cabinet last week, where she had been Education Secretary, so she is now free to express her opinions without the constraints of Cabinet collective responsibility. She has already asked a question, at transport questions, in the House of Commons, criticising the government over its plans to expand Heathrow. Her question was: “On what evidence are the Government now pushing ahead with what I believe to be a flawed plan for expanding Heathrow? The updated national policy statement shows that it is more expensive, lower value, more congesting, noisier, and provides fewer connections. Will the Secretary of State meet me to discuss this?” The reply from the Secretary of State for Transport, Chris Grayling, was: “I know how strongly my right hon. Friend feels about this. She and I have had many conversations about it and I know that we will carry on doing so. She and I, of course, do not share the same view—I believe that this project is strategically important for the United Kingdom—but I am happy to carry on discussing it with her”. On Wednesday, Ms Greening told the Commons that a future generation of MPs will seek to “improve or undo” Brexit if it does not work for young people.
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Justine Greening hits out, with question in Parliament, at Heathrow expansion plans
Justine Greening hits out at Heathrow expansion plans
18th January 2018 (BBC)
Former Education Secretary Justine Greening has criticised the government over its plans to expand Heathrow.
The MP for Putney, which is close to the West London airport, said she believed the proposals were “flawed”.
Ms Greening quit the Cabinet last week after refusing a job as work and pensions secretary.
But Transport Secretary Chris Grayling said he believed expansion of the UK’s biggest international airport was “hugely important” for the UK.
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The clash came as Ms Greening used transport questions in the Commons to claim the latest evidence suggested the plan was “more expensive, lower value, more congesting, noisier and provides fewer connections”.
Mr Grayling said he had already had a number of discussions with Ms Greening about the issue and said Heathrow expansion was “strategically important” for the UK.
But speaking from the backbenches, Ms Greening asked: “On what evidence is the government now pushing ahead with what I believe to be a flawed plan for expanding Heathrow?”
She added: “Will you meet me to discuss this?”
Mr Grayling replied: “I know how strongly you feel about this.
“You and I had many conversations about this and I know we will carry on doing so. You and I, of course, don’t share the same view.
“I believe this project is strategically important for the United Kingdom, but I’m happy to come and discuss it with you.”
On Wednesday, Ms Greening told the Commons that a future generation of MPs will seek to “improve or undo” Brexit if it does not work for young people.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-42733285#
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On what evidence are the Government now pushing ahead with what I believe to be a flawed plan for expanding Heathrow? The updated national policy statement shows that it is more expensive, lower value, more congesting, noisier, and provides fewer connections. Will the Secretary of State meet me to discuss this?
I know how strongly my right hon. Friend feels about this. She and I have had many conversations about it and I know that we will carry on doing so. She and I, of course, do not share the same view—I believe that this project is strategically important for the United Kingdom—but I am happy to carry on discussing it with her.