Chancellor George Osborne today hinted at potential Government support for the construction of the proposed “Boris Island” airport in London.

Mayor of London Boris Johnson remains keen on seeing Thames Estuary airport come to fruition while architect Lord Foster last week put forward plans for the four-runway airport, which, if constructed, will be able to handle 150 million passengers per year. Already, the Government has ruled out the possibility of a third runway being constructed at Heathrow airport.

Mr Osborne said that the government would be explaining all options open for making sure that Britain’s aviation hub status is maintained, although this excludes the possibility of a third runway being built at Heathrow. Osborne’s comments were a part of his autumn statement, which also saw him announcing that the government has already given the go-head to at least 35 new rail and road schemes supportive of economic development.

Among these projects is the TransPennine Express service that runs between the northern cities of Manchester and Leeds, the construction of roads that link Manchester Airport and Crewe, and the extensive redevelopment of the Port of Liverpool. New stations are to be built across Yorkshire with investments in Newcastle’s Metro also being brought forward.

Mr Osborne commented that all of the government’s plans amount to huge commitments being made to overhauling Britain’s physical transport infrastructure.