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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Protesters buy up Heathrow land | Protesters buy up Heathrow land |
| (about 6 hours later) | |
| Land earmarked for the construction of Heathrow's third runway has been bought by anti-expansion protesters. | Land earmarked for the construction of Heathrow's third runway has been bought by anti-expansion protesters. |
| Land the size of half a football pitch near Sipson village - which would lose hundreds of homes in the expansion - was bought by a Greenpeace coalition. | |
| They have pledged not to sell the land to the government or BAA if the airport expansion gets the go-ahead. | They have pledged not to sell the land to the government or BAA if the airport expansion gets the go-ahead. |
| Greenpeace director John Sauven said: "We've thrown a massive spanner in the engine driving Heathrow expansion." | Greenpeace director John Sauven said: "We've thrown a massive spanner in the engine driving Heathrow expansion." |
| The campaigners - including actress Emma Thompson, Tory front bench spokeswoman Justine Greening, Lib Dem MP Susan Kramer and impressionist Alistair McGowan - bought the land for an undisclosed fee. | The campaigners - including actress Emma Thompson, Tory front bench spokeswoman Justine Greening, Lib Dem MP Susan Kramer and impressionist Alistair McGowan - bought the land for an undisclosed fee. |
| We'll stop this from happening even if we have to move in and plant vegetables Emma Thompson class="" href="/1/hi/uk_politics/7825484.stm">Battle lines drawn over Heathrow They have said plans to increase flights at the airport from 480,000 to 720,000 would create unacceptable noise and pollution. | |
| But BBC transport correspondent Tom Symonds said recent planning legislation included clauses that allowed the courts to consider whether or not a land purchase that blocked planned development was "vexatious or frivolous". | |
| This could, in turn, scupper Greenpeace's plans to obstruct the construction for years. | |
| Mr Symonds said the government was due to rule on the plans as early as this week. | |
| The airport industry, business and union leaders have said Heathrow's expansion is vital for the British economy's long-term competitiveness and supporters have suggested work on the runway could create up to 65,000 jobs. | |
| Court challenge | |
| Ms Thompson said: "I don't understand how any government remotely serious about committing to reversing climate change can even consider these ridiculous plans. | Ms Thompson said: "I don't understand how any government remotely serious about committing to reversing climate change can even consider these ridiculous plans. |
| "It's laughably hypocritical. That's why we've bought a plot on the runway. | "It's laughably hypocritical. That's why we've bought a plot on the runway. |
| "We'll stop this from happening even if we have to move in and plant vegetables." | "We'll stop this from happening even if we have to move in and plant vegetables." |
| Protesters have written the words "our climate - our land" on the plot. | Protesters have written the words "our climate - our land" on the plot. |
| Mr Sauven said the group of new landowners would challenge any attempt by the government to force them to sell: "As the new owners of the land where the government wants to build the runway, we'll resist all attempts at compulsory purchase. | |
| "The legal owners of the site will block the runway at every stage through the planning process and in the courts." |