A government decision on a development consent order (DCO) at London Luton Airport, paving the way for a £2.4bn expansion project to cater for 32 millionb passengers a year, has been delayed for a third time.

The verdict on a planning application by Luton Borough Council's airport company was due initially in August. An extension was granted until October, but the outcome was then put back until next month.

Now another three-month postponement means the final response is scheduled to be unveiled in April 2025.

A statement from the Department for Transport (DfT) has confirmed the need to extend the deadline for the DCO decision under the Planning Act 2008.

"Under section 107(1) of the Act, a decision must be made within three months of receipt of the examining authority's report unless the power under section 107(3) to lengthen the deadline is exercised and a statement is made to Parliament announcing the new date," said the DfT.

"The examining authority's report on the London Luton Airport DCO application was received on May 10. The current deadline for a decision is January 3, 2025, having been extended by way of written ministerial statements from the original deadline of August 10.

"The new deadline for the decision is to be put back further until April 3, 2025, a delay of three months. The reason for this is to allow the newly appointed Secretary of State appropriate time to fully consider this complex application before making a final determination.

"The department will endeavour to issue an outcome ahead of the newly announced date where possible. This decision is without prejudice to the final verdict on whether to give development consent for the application."

A previous delay until January was to give the applicant further time to provide requested information, and for that data to be considered by interested parties before the final ruling.

The Luton Rising website explained: "We've applied to expand London Luton Airport's passenger capacity to 32m per annum by building a second terminal and making best use of our single runway.

"An expanded London Luton Airport could provide an extra economic benefit of £1.5bn every year. We estimate that a London Luton Airport handling 32m passengers annually by the mid-2040s could support delivery of almost 11,000 new jobs.

"Expansion of our airport will deliver important new connectivity for the local area, help to attract new businesses and improve productivity, as well as allowing local residents more opportunities to visit friends and family and travel globally.

"If the government approves our application to increase passenger numbers from 19m to 32m a year, we've committed to introducing a unique and ground-breaking initiative called the green controlled growth framework (GCG).

"GCG is a new environmentally-focused approach to managing growth at the airport. It introduces maximum limits for the airport's noise, greenhouse gases, air quality and surface access impacts."

The airport is operated by a private company, London Luton Airport Operations Limited under a concession agreement. The company is entirely separate to LLAL, trading as Luton Rising, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of LBC.