Activists buy land to block runway plans

PLANS to build a third runway at London’s congested Heathrow Airport hit a snag yesterday when Greenpeace and other environmental activists announced they had purchased a substantial plot of land where the planned runway would be built.

The coalition, including actress Emma Thompson, comedian Alistair McGowan and environmentalist Zac Goldsmith, purchased property that is about half the size of a football field in the village of Sipson, where hundreds of homes will be razed if the runway plans go ahead.

The property is on the site of the proposed runway, Greenpeace director John Sauven said yesterday.