THE RUSHING REVOLUTION

Despite the rhetoric, Brown unsurprisingly gave the go-ahead to a third runway for Heathrow this week (15th) - ignoring climate experts, campaigners and local residents.

But the protests continue, this time from the 'Posh Blok': Greenpeace have teamed up with actress Emma Thompson, comedian Alistair McGowan and Eco-Tory-boy Zac Goldsmith to buy a plot of land right in the middle of the proposed runway. The land is to be divided up amongst thousands of co-owners (to get your plot go to www.greenpeace.org.uk), turning any attempts at a compulsory purchase order into a hideously expensive legal nightmare.

This Monday (12th) saw 'Climate Rush', as 500 turned out to Heathrow in Edwardian dress - referencing the suffragette movement - to protest about the third runway and have a picnic, with a string quartet, performance artists, art installations and a giant conga line around the departure lounge. They were met by equal numbers in another type of costume, but the protesters managed to keep it up for several hours, and there were no arrests.

But it's not just posh southerners. On the same day Manchester Airport was also targeted as 50 climate change activists gathered in terminal 3 to protest airport expansion and domestic flights.

* An update after the Plane Stupid action at Stansted Airport on December 8th where 60 cut through the security fence and staged a sit-in on the tarmac, causing over 50 Ryanair flights to be cancelled or delayed (See SchNEWS 659): Ryanair are suing Stansted Airport for their lax security, seeking £2.5 million for lost revenue and damages, and have not ruled out going after Plane Stupid as well. This really would be plain stupid, trying to recover cash from a load of skint student and activist types.

* See also www.planestupid.com