Willie Walsh, the chief executive of British Airways, has warned that Britain faces a low-growth future if the Government fails to allow a third runway to be built at Heathrow.

In a strongly worded speech to the Guild of International Bankers, Walsh said building the runway would benefit the UK economy to the tune of £9bn a year.

Walsh argued Heathrow has lost its position as Europes number one airport with the number of destinations served by the London hub falling to 180 from 227 in 1990 because of a ‘chronic shortage of runway capacity’.

Walsh said that a public consultation over a third runway at Heathrow is expected to be launched soon and added that building it would prove crucial to ending ‘the Heathrow hassle of queues and flight delays’. His comments followed the Civil Aviation Authority’s (CAA) warning to consumers that the cost of flying into Heathrow and Gatwick will rise over the next five years.