Anger as Boris Johnson takes 90-mile FLIGHT on his constituency tour when road journey would have been just 1h 43min… weeks after unveiling ‘greenest manifesto in history’
- PM took the 72-seater plane from Doncaster Sheffield Airport to Teesside Airport
- The flight took half an hour, a car journey would have taken around an hour more
- He could have also used a direct 55-minute Doncaster to Darlington train service
Boris Johnson has come under fire for taking a 90-mile flight on his constituency tour – when using the road would have taken just 1 hour and 43 minutes.
The Prime Minister took aides and journalists with him on the 72-seater plane from Doncaster Sheffield Airport to Teesside Airport this morning, just weeks after his party claimed their manifesto was the ‘greenest ever’.
The flight took half an hour, while a corresponding car journey would have taken just over an hour more.
Mr Johnson could have also taken the train, with Doncaster and Darlington, the two stations nearest the airports he used, connected by a direct service.
That journey would have taken the Prime Minister 55 minutes.
Boris Johnson took aides and journalists with him on the 72-seater plane from Doncaster Sheffield Airport to Teesside Airport this morning
Mr Johnson used the plane as he embarked on a tour of marginal constituencies in the north east of the country.
He took a second short flight from Teesside to Birmingham.
It lasted around 30 minutes and was a calmer flight than his first one of the day.
Mr Johnson’s final campaign stop on Monday is in the South West of England.
Previously, he claimed that his party would usher in a ‘clean energy revolution’ if elected, while also claiming that there is ‘nothing more conservative than protecting our environment’.
He also said that a Conservative government would ‘harness the power of science, innovation and technology to tackle climate change, spur economic growth and create high-skilled, high-wage jobs’.
Other green pledges include investing £1bn in the UK’s electric car industry, and planting a million trees in Northumberland.
Chancellor Sajid Javid previously described the Conservative manifesto as the ‘greenest ever’.
It promises that the Tories will ‘lead the global fight against climate change’, ‘support clean transport to ensure clean air’ and ‘crack down on the waste and carelessness that destroys our natural environment’.
Today’s decision to take a flight on the campaign trail has caused outrage with rival parties and environmental groups criticising the Prime Minister.
He used the plane as he embarked on a tour of marginal constituencies in the north east of the country
Short flights, like the one he took, are one of the most damaging forms of transport to the environment.
Greenpeace UK’s chief scientist Doug Parr told the Mirror: ‘It’s absurd and unacceptable for anyone to take a flight for a journey that could be done less than an hour by train.
‘Not least the prime minister, who should be leading by example. It makes his lack of ambition for tackling the issue glaringly obvious.’
Andy McDonald, Labour’s shadow transport secretary, told The Independent: ‘How can Boris Johnson say he is committed to bringing down emissions when he’s prepared to take unnecessary and environmentally damaging flights?’
Aaron Kiely, a climate campaigner at Friends of the Earth, said: ‘Saving half an hour of travel time has resulted in a journey that’s far worse for the planet. It’s impossible to see what benefit could come from flying over such a short distance rather than using a train, or even campaign bus.’