Heathrow third runway vote: Where will the 3rd runway be? Expansion map
MPs are gearing up for a crunch vote on the contentious third runway at Heathrow Airport. If it goes ahead, where will the third runway be?
Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson has been condemned for travelling to Afghanistan and missing the key Commons vote.
Mr Johnson has long opposed the expansion, saying he would "lie down in front of bulldozers" to prevent it.
Now, however, he will not have to defy orders to tow the party line by voting against it.
MPs are largely expected to vote in favour of expansion after ministers backed the plans earlier this month.
Labour MPs have been given a free vote, meaning they do not have to follow the party line and can vote with their own conscience.
Tory MPs, however, have been given a three-line whip, meaning they must vote with the Government and back the expansion.
If they don’t, they are expected to resign.
Under growing criticism for the timing of his trip to Afghanistan, Mr Johnson said his resignation would "achieve absolutely nothing".
Heathrow
MPs are debating the matter in the run-up to the vote now.
Opening debate in the House of Commons, Transport Secretary Chris Grayling said MPs faced "the biggest transport decision in a generation".
Opponents of the expansion are expressing concerns over the environmental impact.
Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell, whose Hayes and Harlington constituency is near the airport west of London, said the environmental impact of a bigger Heathrow posed "a threat to the planet".
LHR Airports Limited
The runway has long been a sticking point within Parliament.
Almost 20 years of wrangling and delays have added to growing resident frustration.
The runway will likely lead to hundreds of homes being demolished in the nearby villages of Longford, Harmondsworth and Sipson.
Mr Grayling announced £2.6billion in compensation for residents and noise control measures, and Prime Minister Theresa May has stressed the hundreds of thousands of jobs that would be created by the expansion.
LHR Airports Limited
Mr Grayling has assured the public that the work will only happen if air quality commitments are met.
Mr Grayling said the £14bn runway would be completed by 2026.
The runway would increase Heathrow’s capacity from 85.5 million passengers to 130 million annually.
We should know the result of the vote later tonight.