Go-ahead given for Manchester Airport second runway
Thu ,18/01/1996The main news story for this week is that the government have given the go-ahead for the second runway at Manchester Airport. The management at Manchester airport predict the creation of 50,000 jobs, and regard the second runway as the most signficant construction project for Manchester since the opening of the Ship Canal in 1894.
The runway, planned to be in operation by the year 2000, will, it’s predicted, allow 30 million passengers a year to use the airport, making it into the “Heathrow of the North”. Airport bosses are keen to stress that the environmental impact will be kept to a minimum through special measures such as noise monitoring and replacement tree planting.
17thc Hill House is to be taken down and rebuilt in a new location.
Anti-runway campaigners plan protests
Many are very disappointed by the decision, including the Manchester Airport Joint Action Group, the management at Liverpool Airport, and residents of Mobberley, located not far from the end of the planned runway.
Anti-runway campaigners will set up an appeal, and soon, tree protesters may be in residence at Arthur’s Wood which will be destroyed if the runway goes ahead..
Michael Jackson takes the M6 to Manchester Airport
Manchester Airport was in the news earlier this week for an different reason. Michael Jackson & his entourage got on an executive jet there last Sunday evening. The pop star had been looking for castles in Scotland, and had travelled by bus down the M6.
Hong Kong Chinese family to be deported
A family in Hyde may soon be departing from Manchester, on one-way tickets. After 12 years resident in the UK, the Chung family, originally from Hong Kong, has been ordered by the Home Office to leave the UK. The Chungs claim political asylum on the grounds that they could be persecuted in Hong Kong, after it returns to Chinese rule. A decision is should be made next month.
No rain in Manchester the ‘rainy city’
The so-called ‘rainy city’ has had almost no rain this month. A cold spell around the New Year, which brought snow showers to the Manchester area, ended last weekend. Then there was a gradual fall in temperatures during the week, with early fog and clear skies in the afternoon. Today began sunny with temperatures around 12C/53F. The skies clouded over later.
Text and photos by Aidan O’Rourke