'Smear campaign' angers protesters around Heathrow

Campaigners against climate change at Heathrow airport insisted yesterday that they were the victims of a media smear campaign over reports that they planned to bring the airport to a standstill by using hoax bomb threats.

A spokesman for the camp, where protesters are planning to spend the next week on the site of a proposed third runway, accused the airport operator BAA of being behind media reports branding them extremists bent on paralysing the airport.

Last night, up to 30 police officers trying to enter the camp were blocked by protesters. "The police gave us no warning and did not say why they were coming on the site. They did it after the media left," a camp spokesman said.

The Camp for Climate Action, the umbrella group leading the protest, lodged a complaint yesterday against the London Evening Standard for a front-page article headlined "Militants will hit Heathrow".

The story was picked up by other newspapers as well as radio and television bulletins throughout the day. The Evening Standard, which had an undercover reporter in the camp, claimed that activists were planning to use illegal tactics to pose as passengers at Starbucks and McDonald's in the terminal buildings to cause trouble.

A spokesman for the camp said: "This story did not contain a single source or even an attempt at a source. We don't know who is feeding them this stuff and the suspicion is that we are the subject of a smear campaign. We are challenging BAA to come clean."

BAA insisted it was not behind the story. "We are not smearing them and we have no idea where the story in the Standard came from," said a spokeswoman. The operator is furious that activists are refusing to rule out any direct action against the airport that could disrupt Heathrow at one of the busiest times of the year. Last week, BAA sought a draconian injunction severely restricting the rights of people to travel to the protest, though this was massively reduced in scale by a High Court judge.

A spokesman for the Press Complaints Commission confirmed it had received a complaint over the article, citing inaccuracy. Meanwhile, protesters continued to arrive at the camp yesterday where up to 1,500 people are expected by Sunday, many of them locals opposed to continued expansion at Heathrow.

But reports that direct action against the airport was planned continued to circulate. One yesterday concerned an email sent to activists encouraging them to bring smart clothing and air stewardess uniforms.

John Jordan, 42, a protest organiser of Bethnal Green, east London, confirmed the email came from those behind the camp. He said protesters might target businesses around Heathrow and use smart clothing to blend in with ordinary workers. He said: "Our quarrel is with the corporation and the Government, not with the passengers." Mr Jordan claimed the uniforms were for entertainment at the camp and outside terminal buildings.

Public warming to air tax

Public attitudes to flying have hardened in favour of a tax on air travel to try to curb harmful the CO2 emissions that cause global warming. A major survey published yesterday by the Office for National Statistics showed that 44 per cent now support the idea that those who fly should bear the cost of the environmental damage they cause.

The findings suggest a growing number in Britain would support an extra tax on airlines to deter people from flying. Only 31 per cent said they were opposed to taxing air travel for environmental reasons and 25 per cent said they were flying less.

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