On 16 December 2020 the Supreme Court allowed Heathrow’s appeal in the legal proceedings relating to the Government’s Airports National Policy Statement (ANPS). In overturning the earlier Court of Appeal decision, the Supreme Court found that the Paris Agreement on climate change was lawfully taken into account when the ANPS was prepared. This decision sees the ANPS reinstated as Government policy.
Whilst recovering from the devastating impact of Covid-19 will remain our priority, Heathrow expansion will help the country’s future economic recovery and success on the global stage post-Brexit. This privately funded project will secure the global links that the UK needs and will create tens of thousands of jobs across every nation and region of the UK, supporting the Government’s levelling up agenda. We are now consulting with investors, government, airline customers, and regulators on our next steps.
We have supported the local community throughout this unprecedented pandemic, and we remain committed to doing so moving forward. We know the benefits that Heathrow expansion can bring – increased trade, travel and jobs for the local community as well as across all of the nations and regions of the UK. But we also appreciate there are some who are dealing with a huge amount of uncertainty at this time. We are committed to continue to work through this process and bring clarity as soon as possible.
Property Policies update
As part of our expansion proposals, we developed a set of discretionary property compensation schemes, including enhanced compensation for qualifying owners or occupiers of eligible properties affected by our proposals. The schemes were set out in our interim Property Policies, which explained our general approach to buying properties and land and set out the discretionary compensation offers available for eligible properties.
We would like to thank all those who submitted feedback on our Property Policies. Since the close of our Airport Expansion Consultation, we have reviewed the feedback and will provide a further update at an appropriate time.
Interim Property Hardship Fund
Heathrow recognises that the Supreme Court’s decision in December 2020 reinstating the Airports National Policy Statement (ANPS) has reignited interest in Heathrow Expansion and the property compensation schemes we had made available. Since that decision, Heathrow has been taking steps with a view to reopening the Interim Property Hardship Scheme. We have had to consult with a range of stakeholders.
From 1st May 2021 Heathrow’s Interim Property Hardship Scheme will be reinstated, and applications can be submitted. The scheme will run under the same terms as it did previously.
The Interim Property Hardship Scheme is available to eligible property owners who have a compelling need to sell their property but have been unable to do so, except at a substantially reduced price, as a direct result of the proposals for the Heathrow Expansion Project – and as a consequence are facing significant hardship.
Our discretionary interim policies are intended to supplement and operate in parallel with the existing statutory regime governing compensation for the compulsory acquisition of land. This Interim Property Hardship Scheme policy goes beyond the statutory compensation regime.
To qualify to have a property purchased by Heathrow under the Interim Property Hardship Scheme, an applicant must satisfy ALL the five criteria below:
(a) qualifying interest; (b) no prior knowledge; (c) proximity; (d) efforts to sell; and (e) hardship.
Applicants will need to provide evidence to demonstrate that they satisfy each individual criterion.
Applicants will need to submit a completed application form together with supporting evidence. A copy of the application form is available by contacting:
Toby Swindells
CBRE
Henrietta House
Henrietta Place
London
W1G 0NB
Mail: heathrow@cbre.com
Telephone: 020 7182 2146
As soon as we have received an application, we will provide a written acknowledgement of receipt. We will then check through the application to make sure all sections have been completed and that supporting evidence has been provided, to enable the independent panel to then assess the application. We may contact the applicant’s estate agent(s) or other persons to independently verify information contained in the application.
Please take a look at our interim property hardship scheme policy to consider whether you might eligible.
Next steps
We remain committed to working with local communities. If you have any concerns or queries, please contact the Community Relations team on 0800 307 7996 or email communityrelations@heathrow.com.
