Birmingham Airport’s proposal for more night flights faces backlash from local councils and residents, sparking a heated consultation debate
Birmingham: There’s a bit of a stir going on over at Birmingham Airport. Solihull Council is in hot water for not chatting with North Warwickshire about plans to ramp up night flights. If they get the green light, flights could jump from five to about 7.3% more during the late hours over the next three years.
The folks at the airport say they need these extra flights to keep up and not lose out on cash. But not everyone is on board. There’s a petition with 642 signatures against it, plus a bunch of objections from local councils. The planning committee is set to make a call on this tonight.
Things got a bit messy when North Warwickshire’s development chief, Jeff Brown, said they weren’t consulted at all. He found out about the plans through the news, which is pretty wild. He asked Solihull to hold off on a decision, but they said no, leaving him and others feeling pretty left out.
Brown pointed out that if the roles were reversed, Solihull would be just as upset. Residents in Coleshill, Curdworth, and Water Orton are feeling the heat too, with one saying he’s appalled by the lack of consultation.
Another councillor, Mark Simpson, agreed that while there’s a committee that includes North Warwickshire, it’s just not enough for something this significant. Solihull Council later clarified that this isn’t a brand-new planning application but a review of an existing agreement that’s been around since 2009.
They’ve been talking about this for a while, and North Warwickshire has been invited to share their thoughts. The planning meeting is open to the public and can be watched live online, so it’ll be interesting to see how this all plays out.
