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Rachel Reeves risked a Labour civil war today as she insisted Heathrow’s third runway must go ahead.
The Chancellor said the decision on expansion ‘cannot be ducked any longer’ as she backed a range of projects designed to revive the stalling economy.
During a speech in Oxford, she acknowledged business fury at her National Insurance raid, saying there were ‘costs to responsibility’ but the ‘costs of irresponsibility would be much higher’.
Blaming other politicians for lacking the ‘courage’ to prioritise growth, Ms Reeves insisted she was ready to ‘fight’ for it.
Airport expansion – including support for the long-mooted third runway at Heathrow – and creating ‘Europe’s Silicon Valley’ in the Oxford-Cambridge corridor are among the initiatives.
Watched by Cabinet ministers – but notably not Net Zero Secretary Ed Miliband, who has opposed the Heathrow plan – Ms Reeves said a bigger airport would increase GDP and make the UK …