Londoners strongly support Heathrow building a third runway, a poll has shown, as the Government faces a row with Sadiq Khan over the plan.
More than half of people in the capital (56%) surveyed said they were in favour of the expansion, which Chancellor Rachel Reeves on Wednesday announced the Government would back.
Just 25% of Londoners surveyed opposed the scheme, while 19% were undecided.
There is also more support in the city compared to the rest of the country, where just 46% of people said they back the expansion and 23% oppose it.
Luke Tryl, director of pollsters More in Common, that carried out the survey, said: “Research shows the British public firmly back Heathrow's third runway - with support outstripping opposition by two to one.
“Notably, we see stronger support among Londoners than those in the rest of the country.
“With opposition falling since last year, it's clear the public increasingly see the growth case for expanding the UK’s hub airport and the chancellor's decision looks set to land on a receptive audience.”
But the Government is expected to face a fight with Sir Sadiq who said the project would have a “severe impact on noise, air pollution and meeting our climate change targets”.
The Mayor added: “Despite the progress that's been made in the aviation sector to make it more sustainable, I’m simply not convinced that you can have hundreds of thousands of additional flights at Heathrow every year without a hugely damaging impact on our environment.”
The Heathrow plan would have a major impact on the local area, with hundreds of homes demolished and villages, such as Harmondsworth and Longford, likely to be partly or wholly torn down.
Labour-run Wandsworth Council has already signalled its opposition to the Government backing expansion, with thousands of people who live in the south west London borough under the airport’s flight paths and facing more flights passing over.
Council Leader, Simon Hogg, said: “We cannot stand by and let Heathrow have a green light to enact such unwelcome changes on our communities. The third runway not only threatens our environment but will also severely affect the day-to-day lives of thousands of Wandsworth residents. This fight is about protecting their quality of life, holding the Government accountable for its climate promises, and ensuring a sustainable future for our borough. We will work tirelessly alongside our coalition partners to oppose these plans.”
Liberal Democrat MPs have also opposed the expansion.
Bobby Dean, MP for Carshalton and Wallington, asked why flights were being prioritised "over more sustainable rail transport projects".
He warned: "If we choose to back measures that undermine our net zero targets, then we might be going for growth today with severe consequences for tomorrow."
Ms Reeves said a third runway was “badly needed” as part of the UK’s growth plans and would create “over 100,000 jobs”.
She said that "by backing a third runway at Heathrow we can make Britain the world's best-connected place to do business".
"That is what it takes to make decisions in the national interest and that is what I mean by going further and faster to kick-start economic growth," she added.
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander, who opposed a third runway at Heathrow when she was Sir Sadiq’s deputy mayor for transport, said the plans would have to “be delivered in line with the UK’s legal, climate, and environmental obligations” to go ahead.
Conservative voters revealed the strongest support with 62% in favour and just 21 percent opposed to a third runway.
Among Labour voters, 51% backed the expansion, while 22% wanted to see it rejected.
Green Party voters were outliers with just a quarter in agreement that it should go ahead.
More in Common surveyed 2009 people. Respondents were weighted according to age/sex, 2024 General Election vote, ethnicity, and education level.
