Federal Member for Grayndler Anthony Albanese today called on State Liberal MPs to come clean on whether they support Barry O’Farrell’s plan to increase the number of flights at Sydney Airport.
The consequences of Barry O’Farrell’s opposition to a second Sydney airport are now exposed for all to see.
“Under Barry O’Farrell’s plan, the restriction on the number of flight movements every hour would increase from 80 to 85. In addition, the NSW Coalition Government want flights taking off and landing after the curfew of 11:00pm and additional flights before 6:00am in the morning, “Mr Albanese said.
“What this means is more noise very early in the morning and very late at night – a practical end to the curfew, which is an unacceptable outcome for communities already impacted by aircraft noise.
“Barry O’Farrell’s plan to increase flights will end noise sharing and increase the concentration of flights over suburbs like Drummoyne, Balmain, Strathfield, Leichhardt, Hunters Hill, Gladesville and Ryde.
“State MPs for Drummoyne, Willoughby, Ryde, Strathfield, Epping, Lane Cove, Miranda and Cronulla must come clean on whether they support Barry O’Farrell’s plan.
“The Federal Government has made its position on this issue clear – we do not support any changes to the operation of the current cap or curfew and to the credit of local MPs, such as Joe Hockey and Scott Morrison, this has bipartisan federal support.
“The clear conclusion of the Joint Aviation Study co-written by the Federal and State Government is that Sydney needs a second airport - sooner rather than later. Tinkering at the edges of Sydney Airport will not provide the aviation capacity that a global city like Sydney needs.
“Barry O'Farrell can't continue to put his head in the sand on the issue of a second airport, when almost everyone in Australia is saying we need one and we need to act sooner rather than later.”
A second airport will bring economic benefits to local communities, NSW and the nation by creating thousands of jobs and unlocking billions of dollars in investment.