A SUSSEX MP warned today that a second runway at Gatwick Airport would be catastrophic.

Mid Sussex Conservative MP Nicholas Soames said it was "disgraceful" the Government had not ruled out the possibility of future expansion at the airport.

He said: "It would be would be a catastrophe. It would mean that the infrastructure would be massively overburdened, the local economy would simply implode and the environment would be under even greater pressure.

"We will fight it very hard indeed. It appears there is no environmental insult too great for Mid-Sussex."

Mr Soames, who was Crawley MP for ten years before moving to the Mid Sussex constituency, spoke out after learning that John Prescott had ordered Crawley Council to put plans for a 2,500 housing development to the north of the town on hold while an investigation into the future of Gatwick was carried out.

The report, which looks at expansion programmes at all UK airports, will take at least two years to complete and is expected to take in the result of the long-running Heathrow Airport Fifth Terminal inquiry.

The British Airports Authority insists there are no plans for a second runway at Gatwick.

Alegal covenant drawn up between the airport and surrounding local authorities more than 20 years ago states no further expansion can begin to be considered until at least 2019.

The airport intends to increase annual passenger numbers from nearly 30 million to 40 million over the next ten years and says this will be done by building a new smaller, satellite terminal area.

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