Demos end week of climate protests
Environmental campaigners marked the end of a week-long protest at Heathrow Airport with demonstrations at businesses across the UK on Monday.
About 50 protesters remained at a sit-in at the headquarters of airport operator BAA close to the perimeter of the west London airport.
There were some minor scuffles as campaigners attempted to block some workers from entering the building.
But police said a group of about 100 people who set up camp in the car park on Sunday passed a relatively "quiet night".
Below, the opposing sides in this contentious debate go head-to-head to defend their positions.
The case against aviation expansion
"Aviation is the fastest-growing source of climate change emissions. Although the industry now pays lip-service to ideas of sustainability, it is unable, or unwilling, to grasp the simple truth that the planned expansion of the UK’s airports is not compatible with what needs to be done to tackle climate change." Read more...
The case for aviation expansion
"Heathrow is the UK’s only hub airport and one of our country’s most important economic assets. Like it or not, the UK is part of a global economy and efficient international aviation links are vital to high-value world markets. Having the world’s busiest international airport on our doorstep has undoubtedly contributed to London’s success as a financial centre, but that success should not be taken for granted." Read more...
