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Heathrow Airport is in talks with scores of airlines including British Airways about a once-a-decade overhaul of its occupancy – which could lead to some being forced to relocate their long-standing bases.

Sky News has learnt that Heathrow has opened negotiations with the 82 carriers which fly from the airport with a view to implementing operational changes aimed at better using its capacity during the coming years.

The last such set of discussions with carriers is understood to have taken place more than a decade ago.

It was unclear on Wednesday what stage the talks were at, or how fundamental the resulting changes would be, although airlines with major workforces at Heathrow are expected to try to moderate or resist enforced relocations.

By far the most significant operator at Heathrow is BA, which moved into the £4.3bn Terminal 5 in March 2008.

T5 is used exclusively by the airline, and handles more than 30m passengers annually.

Industry sources described the possibility of BA relocating its existing Heathrow home as highly unlikely.

More on British Airways

A BA spokesman declined to comment.

Other major airline users of Heathrow include Qatar Airways, American Airlines, Singapore Airlines and Virgin Atlantic.

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Sources said Heathrow’s review could lead to a wide-ranging shift in space allocation at the airport.

One industry insider speculated that members of the Star Alliance, which include Air Canada, Singapore Airlines and Lufthansa and which largely operate out of Terminal 2, could be among those affected by the shake-up.

Responding to an enquiry from Sky News, a spokesman for Heathrow said: “Occupancy reviews are a normal part of running the airport – it’s how we ensure we make best use of the space that we have.

“We undertake these reviews usually once a decade to accommodate for changes in airline operations and airport infrastructure – the last review was in 2014 to coincide with the opening of Terminal 2.”

The spokesman added that its “objective in these reviews is to make the best use of the limited space at Heathrow, particularly focusing on driving overall operational resilience and matching available capacity with demand – this enables us to protect passenger experience of travelling through the airport”.

He said occupancy decision were made “in consultation with the entire airline community”.

On Wednesday, Heathrow said it would pay a dividend to shareholders for the first time in five years, with such payouts having been stymied by the pandemic.

The £250m payment comes as the Labour government seeks to boost economic growth by approving an unprecedented wave of aviation capacity projects.

Last year, Heathrow served close to 84m passengers, with pre-tax profits rising 31% to £917m.

Heidi Alexander, the transport secretary, is expected to give the green light to expansion at Gatwick, London’s second-biggest airport, this week, while Heathrow is reviving plans for a third runway after years of political and public protests.

Heathrow said on Wednesday: “We welcome the government’s endorsement of a third runway at Heathrow – we are submitting our proposals to the government this summer.

“We are working with ministers to agree the policy changes needed to deliver the project successfully.

“Our aim is to meet the government’s ambition to secure planning permission before the end of this parliament.”

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Protesters throw powder on Tower Bridge during London Marathon

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Protesters throw powder on Tower Bridge during London Marathon

Two pro-Palestinian demonstrators have thrown red powder on Tower Bridge – just moments before leading runners in the London Marathon went past.

The protesters were arrested on suspicion of causing a public nuisance and remain in custody, said the Metropolitan Police.

A video shared by Youth Demand, which is calling for a trade embargo on Israel, shows two people jumping over a barrier that separates spectators from the race course.

The pair, wearing t-shirts that say “Youth Demand: Stop Arming Israel”, are then seen standing in the middle of the road on the bridge.

Pic: LNP
Image:
Pic: LNP

They throw red powder in the air as an official marathon car goes past displaying the race time.

A motorbike with a cameraman on board continues along the route, while a second motorbike stops and one of the riders gets off and pushes the pair out of the way, just before the men’s elite runners pass.

Several police officers then jump over the barrier and detain the pair, the footage shows.

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There appeared to be no impact on the marathon.

More than 56,000 participants were expected to take part in the 26.2-mile race through the capital.

Sabastian Sawe of Kenya won the men’s elite race in a time of two hours, two minutes and 27 seconds, while Ethiopia’s Tigst Assefa shattered the women’s-only world record in two hours, 15 minutes and 50 seconds.

Assefa beat the previous best of two hours, 16 minutes and 16 seconds set last year in London by Kenyan Peres Jepchirchir.

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Pic: LNP
Image:
Pic: LNP

The Metropolitan Police said in a statement: “At around 10.38am, two protesters from Youth Demand jumped over barriers at Tower Bridge and threw red paint on to the road.

“Marathon event staff intervened to remove the protesters from the path of the men’s elite race which was able to pass unobstructed.”

The force added that they were “quickly supported by police officers who arrested the protesters on suspicion of causing a public nuisance”.

The Met said the paint “appeared to be chalk-based” and was not expected to “present a hazard to runners yet to pass this point”.

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Kemi Badenoch does not rule out local coalitions with Reform after next week’s council elections

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Kemi Badenoch does not rule out local coalitions with Reform after next week's council elections

Kemi Badenoch has not ruled out forming coalitions at a local level with Reform after the council elections next week.

Speaking to Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips, the Conservative leader did however categorically rule out a pact with Nigel Farage’s party on a national level.

“I am not going into any coalition with Nigel Farage… read my lips,” she said.

However, she did not deny that deals could be struck with Reform at a local level, arguing that some councils might be under no overall control and in that case, “you have to do what is right for your local area”.

“You look at the moment, we are in coalition with Liberal Democrats, with independents,” she said. “We’ve been in coalition with Labour before at local government level.

“They [councillors] have to look at who the people are that they’re going into coalition with and see how they can deliver for local people.”

She added: “What I don’t want to hear is talks of stitch-ups or people planning things before the results are out. They have to do what is right for their communities.”

More on Electoral Dysfunction

A total of 23 councils are up for grabs when voters go to the polls on Thursday 1 May – mostly in places that were once deemed Tory shires, until last year’s general election.

It includes 14 county councils, all but two of which have been Conservative-controlled, as well as eight unitary authorities, all but one of which are Tory.

Ms Badenoch has set expectations low for the Tories, suggesting they could lose all the councils they are contesting.

The last time this set of councils were up for election was in 2021, when the Conservative Party was led by Boris Johnson who was riding high from the COVID vaccine bounce.

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Counter-terrorism police investigating after two women injured in Leeds

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Counter-terrorism police investigating after two women injured in Leeds

Counter-terrorism police are investigating after an incident involving a crossbow and a firearm left two women injured in Leeds.

Police were called to Otley Road at 2.47pm on Saturday to reports of a “serious incident involving a man seen with weapons”, West Yorkshire Police said.

Officers arrived at the scene to find two women injured – and a 38-year-old man with a self-inflicted injury. All three were taken to hospital, with the man held under arrest, but their injuries are not believed to be life-threatening.

“Two weapons have been recovered from the scene, which were a crossbow and a firearm,” Counter Terrorism Policing North East said in a statement.

The incident happened on the ‘Otley Run’ pub crawl, with one venue saying it was closed for the evening due to “unforeseen circumstances”.

Officers guard one of the crime scenes in Leeds
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Officers guard one of the crime scenes

Officers inside the cordon in Leeds
Image:
Officers inside the cordon in Leeds

Counter Terrorism Policing’s statement added: “Due to the circumstances surrounding the incident, Counter Terrorism Policing North East have taken responsibility for leading the investigation with the support of West Yorkshire Police.

“Extensive enquiries continue to establish the full circumstances and explore any potential motivation.”

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper described it as a “serious violent incident” and said she was being kept updated by police.

“Thank you to the police and emergency services for their swift response,” she said. “My thoughts are with the victims and all those affected by this attack.”

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