The Tories today tore into the Government’s plans for a third runway at Heathrow as ministers braced themselves for a major Labour revolt in the Commons.

Opening an Opposition debate in the Commons, Theresa Villiers, the Shadow Transport Secretary, said expansion would place an “unacceptable cost” on the quality of life of millions of people around Europe's busiest airport.

She accused the Government of not paying regard to the damage to the environment and health that the extra emissions from flights would cause.

Ms Villiers said she wanted to see a “better not bigger” Heathrow and claimed the Government had lost the argument over the economic case for expansion and the pollution, congestion, noise and carbon emissions it would cause.

Times Archive, 1946: Heathrow now in use

A big crowd were at the new London airport today to see the first civil aeroplane take off from the 3,000-yard main runway

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She said: “We do believe that there comes a time when stuffing thousands and thousands more flights and millions and millions more passengers into the same overcrowded corner starts to impose an unacceptable cost in terms of our environment and our quality of life.

“We believe Heathrow needs to be better, not bigger, which is why we and so many others oppose the Government’s plans to build a third runway.”

Ms Villiers was speaking to a Tory motion, backed by the Liberal Democrats, calling on the Government to rethink its policy. The Tories hope today’s vote, while not binding on the Government, will embarrass ministers and damage Gordon Brown’s authority over his backbenchers.

The Transport Secretary Geoff Hoon announced the Government’s support for the airport’s expansion earlier this month, despite opposition from all sides of the Commons. Labour’s John McDonnell, whose Hayes and Harlington constituency includes Heathrow, was thrown out after grabbing the mace in protest at the plans - although he was back in the chamber today.

Some 132 MPs - including almost 50 Labour - have signed an early day motion protesting against the move and demanding a vote on the issue. Villiers denied her party was making a “political football” out of the runway, telling MPs: “We are giving the House the opportunity to have the vote the Government wouldn’t give them.”

Ms Villiers said the “massive” increase in flights at Heathrow would “intensify a serious problem” with nitrogen dioxide pollution.

“With 220,000 more flights, the airport could well become the largest single source of carbon dioxide in the UK, emitting nearly 27 million tonnes of CO2 every year," she added.

A report in The Times today said a third runway would result in regional airports having to abandon plans for expansion to meet Government targets for climate change. It said the increase would be so great that regional airports could be forced to cut flights to avoid a breach of the carbon change target.

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