Wednesday, November 2, 2016
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PAPER
Third runway night flights banned – but what about Gatwick’s burden?
Businesses hit by bomb scare INSIDE Sealing off town centre could cost retailers £1million
TWITTER OUTBURST
MP sparks social media frenzy after TV appearance Page 4
By Andrew Tong THE decision to award the runway expansion project to Heathrow seemed like a victory for those who want to protect the skies over West Kent from further noise pollution. But one aspect of the deal, the pledge to outlaw night flights on the third runway, has led to renewed calls for action to reduce noise pollution caused during the early hours by Gatwick. The provision said that there would be no flights between 11.30pm and 6am. There are currently restrictions on air traffic at Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted between these times, but no outright ban. The numbers of night flights permitted at Gatwick and Stansted already far outstrip the quotas applied to Heathrow. As the next set of figures are considered, the Department for Transport (DFT) is warning that numbers could rise at Gatwick. The MP for Tonbridge & Malling, Tom Tugendhat, raised the matter with the Transport Secretary, Chris Grayling, when he announced the government’s decision in the House of Commons on October 25. Mr Tugendhat said: “Could he please talk about the six-and-ahalf hours’ relief he is, quite rightly, offering the people of Heathrow? Could he not extend that ban to Gatwick, where we suffer all the time?”
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NHS BUDGET CUTS
Cash-strapped hospitals find ways to beat deficit Page 5
ROBOT AT WORK Troops prepare the disposal device
By Murray Jones
murray@thetimesoftunbridgewells.co.uk TUNBRIDGE WELLS was brought to a standstill on Monday after police called in a bomb disposal team to deal with a ‘suspicious package’. It had been left by the side of the phone box (right) on the pedestrian precinct outside Royal Victoria Place (RVP). The army team used a robot to carry out a controlled explosion on a small suitcase which was reported to police by a member of the public. Police later said that the contents were found to be harmless. It is not thought there was any malicious intent behind the incident that saw streets around the precinct cordoned off. Shops
PALM OIL WARS
Hostile takeover bid leads to major corporate battle Page 7
and stores were evacuated and closed for up to five hours. The shopping centre attracts thousands of visitors every day. Initial estimates from businesses and retailers who talked to the Times indicate that the loss in trade could run to more than £1million.
‘It doesn’t seem like the kind of place people would bomb’ Traders described it as ‘a disastrous day’ with many shoppers having gone home by the time they reopened. Some spoke of a drop in takings of around 80 per cent.
More than 100 shops in RVP and the precinct were shut at 10.13am with customers and staff being evacuated by police and security staff. It was originally thought the case might contain explosives. One of the stores nearest to the phone box, Boots, was quietly evacuated five minutes before the fire alarm was sounded throughout RVP, with a voice over the Tannoy asking people to calmly make their way out of the shopping centre.
Continued on page 3
CHRISTMAS STORM
Boogie Storm strut their stuff at big lights switch-on Page 11