London mayor race: redevelop City Airport, says Green Party's Sian Berry

She may be an outsider to succeed Boris Johnson, but the Green Party candidate seems determined to invigorate the debate about the capital's future

Green Party London candidate Sian Berry has unveiled a plan for closing London City airport and redeveloping it as a new housing and business quarter, complete with cultural facilities, shops, an opportunities for innovative employers and entrepreneurs. Berry, a Camden councillor who is also running for a seat on the London Assembly, argues that the small airport in the east of the capital next to the Royal Docks in Newham contributes precious little to UK air transport capacity and will become still less important once Crossrail opens, providing a faster rail link between Heathrow and Canary Wharf, which City Airport is closer to.

It's an eye-catching argument. As well as claiming that the airport causes "untold health and environmental problems to thousands of local residents," Berry contends that its continuing existence makes no economic sense. She says it's undermining the Royal Docks enterprise zone and "holding back London's economic potential."