Conservative MP Patrick McLoughlin has become Minister of Transport as a result of the current Cabinet reshuffle (previous occupant Justine Greening being moved to International Development).
There are suggestions that the move was at least in part to open up the option of adding a third runway at Heathrow. McLoughlin was Aviation Minister between 1989 and 1992 and Mayor Johnson has already begun vocally arguing that this is the case in the media.
In addition to Greening’s departure, Teresa Villiers has also been moved on. This may have some positives for London, as Villiers has traditionally been regarded as an opponent of Crossrail 2.
Overall, it remains to be seen what consequences the current reshuffle will have for DfT policy. Once again, however, a Department for which long-term thinking and consistency is crucial appears to be suffering from a lack of continuity at the top. As journalist Michael Crick pointed out shortly after the announcement, McLoughlin becomes the 24th living person to have occupied the position of Minister for Transport, and unfortunately there seems to be little sign that this trend is likely to change.
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