Flying Low

The Secretary of State for Talking about the Environment, Hilary Benn, has discovered that the building of a third runway at Heathrow might possibly affect Britain's ability to meet its obligations under European law. "You are then in trouble with the commission, you get infraction proceedings and then off you go - which is not something we can contemplate," he said. Presumably it will remain for the forthcoming Daveybloke administration, having seceded from Europe in accordance with the needs of British sovereignty, Atlanticist dogma and core-vote blimpishness, to tear up whatever treaties New New Labour may happen, in its flounderings, to have left unbreached.

Meanwhile, Bomber Hoon froths: "Reports that we are seeking to abrogate from our responsibilities in this area solely in order to promote expansion at Heathrow are completely and utterly wrong"; which proves, predictably enough, that Bomber Hoon does not know what the word abrogate means.