THE Government has said it would back further expansion of Leeds Bradford Airport (LBA) if the owners produced plans.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves, who represents Leeds West and Pudsey, had previously opposed a new terminal at the site.
But she told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “If Leeds Bradford came back with plans to expand, I would support those, because I think that things have changed significantly in the last few years, and the Cabinet supports these plans.
“We’ve already, as a Government, signed off expansion at Stansted and City Airport, because we know that we need the economic growth, and we know that sustainable aviation and economic growth go hand in hand.”
LBA pleased with Chancellor announcement
Vincent Hodder, CEO of LBA, welcomed this and feels we now have a government that "understands the role of aviation as an economic accelerator".
He said: “The Chancellor’s announcement yesterday and her comments today voices positive support for the aviation industry as a whole.
"We’ve now got a government who understands the role of aviation as an economic accelerator and are willing to stand behind it and support sustainable growth.
"Here at LBA, we’re looking forward to working in collaboration with our government, our airline partners and our community to ensure we’re delivering the world-class facilities Yorkshire deserves.”
LBA's extension plans
In May 2020, LBA applied to Leeds City Council (LCC) for planning permission to build a replacement passenger terminal building.
This was approved by LCC in Feb 2021 but that decision was referred to the Department for Levelling Up Housing & Communities (DLUHC) in March 2021 and subsequently ‘called in’ by the secretary of state for a public inquiry in Jan 2022.
In light of this, LBA decided to withdraw the application in March 2022.
Since then, LBA changed its strategy and moved ahead with a £200 million regeneration programme, which including a £100 million extension and refurbishment of the existing terminal building via the implementation of a previously approved planning consent.
This project is now well underway, with Phase 1 due to complete in Summer 2025.
LBA's Vision 2030 strategy, which was launched last year, will create up to 5,500 new jobs and contribute a total of nearly £1 billion to the local economy as the airport reaches an anticipated seven million passengers a year by 2030.
Share