Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell was speaking at a rally on Oct 4 outside the High Court in London where several claimants, including environmental group Plan B Earth, the London Mayor, and some local councils, were all hoping to gain approval for a full judicial review of the government’s decision to expand Heathrow airport.
McDonnell warned that if the democratic and legal processes fail, then direct action will win, and that the third runway must not be built for the sake of the planet.
Although some of the legal challenges are around air pollution and traffic congestion, the biggest argument is that any increase in capacity flies in the face of carbon emission targets that the UK has already signed up for.
At the rally, others echoed the call for direct action against climate change, and two speakers from Extinction Rebellion invited people to join their civil disobedience ‘Climate Rebellion’ at the end of this month and onwards.
