CAMPAIGNERS opposing Leeds Bradford Airport’s new terminal plan have compared the fight to ‘David versus Goliath’.

The airport (LBA) is seeking permission to replace its old terminal with a £150 million modern building that would enable it to cater for up to seven million passengers a year.

LBA says the proposal would deliver a terminal for the future with high environmental credentials that would be ‘one of the most sustainable airport buildings in the UK’.

But environmental campaigners claim it is part of an expansion plan that is incompatible with attempts to slow global warming and cut carbon emissions.

A consultation on the proposals, which have attracted more than 1,500 objections (along with many messages of support) ended on Friday, July 10.

GALBA (Group for Action on Leeds Bradford Airport) said it wanted to thank all those - including seven local MPs, 20 councillors, five parish councils and climate scientists at Leeds University - who had lodged objections.

Chair Chris Foren said: “It’s a David vs Goliath struggle - and we’re David! The airport’s owners, AMP Capital, are an extremely wealthy investment company, based in Australia.

“LBA has its own paid public relations team and a huge e-mail ‘marketing’ list. “None of us are paid anything. We’re just a group of ordinary local people, determined to protect our environment and the future. So are thousands of other people in West Yorkshire.”

He also expressed sympathy for the 102 workers at LBA who are at risk of redundancy. He said: “We desperately don’t want local people to be without work but the airport is not the way forward for jobs.”

LBA, meanwhile, insists its new terminal is vital to both its future and the prosperity of the local economy. In a recent letter CEO Hywel Rees said the proposals offered ‘a shovel-ready opportunity to kick-start the Yorkshire economy and to provide long term, high-value, knowledge-based jobs in the future’.