Lord Foster's vision for the airport and transport hub

by Alan McGuinness

North Kent's MPs have joined forces to press for an urgent meeting with David Cameron on plans for a multi-billion pounds airport in the Thames Estuary.

Tracey Crouch, Mark Reckless and Rehman Chishti - all from Medway - have signed a letter calling for the face to face discussions, along with Gordon Henderson, Adam Holloway and Gareth Johnson, who represent Sittingbourne and Sheppey, Gravesham and Dartford respectively.

The move comes amid mounting speculation that the government is set to formally consult on the plans, which would transform the Medway Towns and North Kent.

According to the Daily Telegraph, David Cameron was set to announce preliminary backing for an airport in North Kent earlier this month.

The announcement of the consultation would have been linked in with the High Speed 2 rail announcement, but was put back because it was claimed by Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg it was "being rushed through", according to the paper.

It was reported the scheme will be unveiled in March, with the Prime Minister broadly backing the plans dependent on consultation.

In the letter the MPs call on the government to look instead at "fully utilising the capacity of existing airports in the South East", such as Birmingham, which will be less than an hour away from London when the High Speed 2 line is finished.

The letter states: "The proposals do not appear to be supported by the public, or indeed by the aviation industry.

"If any such proposal was to go ahead it would have an enormous effect on the lives of hundreds of thousands of residents living in the wider Thames Estuary region and devastate an area of global environmental significance."

London Mayor Boris Johnson wants to build a floating airport in the Thames Estuary, while architect Lord Foster wants to site one on the Isle of Grain.

The latter would be the biggest airport in the world, with its four runways handling 150 million passengers a year.

The scheme also includes building a huge barrage and a new rail network system: effectively an M25 for the railways, skirting London.

An integrated rail station beneath the passenger terminal would be the UK's busiest - with 300,000 arrivals and departures every day.

In their letter the MPs said they were "concerned" as to how the government would fund Foster’s scheme, which has an estimated cost of £50bn.

However, in an exclusive interview with the KM Group in November, Lord Foster said a number of private investors would be interested in funding the project, which he said was "certainly not pie in the sky".