Davies Commission report generates heated media debate

The publication of a Government-commissioned report on airport expansion in the south-east of England led to a huge volume of debate in the newspapers on where said expansion should take place... as well as whether expansion should take place at all.

Rik Thomas

10 July 2015

London’s Metro newspaper on 2 July was just one of many to highlight the political implications of the Davies Commission report on airport expansion

IN LATE June and early July, media coverage of transport issues was dominated to a dramatic degree by the question of which, if any, of the airports in the south east of England should be expanded to meet anticipated demand.

A veritable blizzard of coverage kicked off in The Independent on 26 June with the publication of a public opinion poll that indicated that the vast majority of the population of London do not see the need for any airport expansion at all. “A poll by ComRes found that...