Our illustrator's take on Boris Johnson and the Heathrow expansion
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Heathrow/ Image Credit: Beverley Irving
Johnson is extremely interested in British industry, especially in the north. But there are a lot of issues that need to be tackled to improve the nation's health, not just our economy.
According to reports, deaths from Asthma attacks are the highest they have been in more than a decade. In 2018, over 1,400 people died from the condition.
As The Times so brilliantly described in June of this year: "Boris Johnson once pledged to lie down in front of the bulldozers to stop Heathrow from expanding. Yet when the moment for political bravery arrived, he couldn't be bothered to turn up in parliament to vote against it."
Even Johnson cannot argue with the fact that a third runway at Heathrow would increase air pollution in and around London. Such a rise in the level of toxic air will only increase the number of deaths in people suffering from Asthma.
Johnson's argument against the third runway has always been confused. In 2015 he claimed that a third runway was not a 'long term' solution, but the government has also refused to rule out a fourth runway in order to compete with other world capitals.
Either way, it seems that keeping the air safe for asthma sufferers is not at the top of our government's to-do list.
Lead Image Credit: Beverley Irving