by business editor Trevor Sturgess

Business leaders are ramping up their demand for more informed debate on a hub airport rather than dismissing the idea out of hand.

Members of DRINK - Demand Regeneration in North Kent - and representatives of the CBI and Institute of Directors discussed the issues at a meeting at Priesfield, Gillingham, yesterday.

It is their second high-level meeting in a month to test the mood of the business community towards an airport in the Thames estuary or on the Isle of Grain.

They are seeking more information from informed sources about the impact of a hub airport and and its potential contribution to regeneration. It is inviting MPs and other politicians representing affected constituencies to a third meeting on April 27.

The multi-billion pound project would bring thousands of jobs and huge investment to the area but strain local infrastructure and housing.

Neville Gaunt, the chairman of DRINK who also chairs the Federation of Small Businesses’ north Kent branch, welcomed business involvement, saying that if an airport is given the green light in the coming months "we will need to be ready to manage the consequences and press the authorities to secure the best deal for the whole community."

Medway council leader Rodney Chambers and protest groups are fiercely opposed to a local hub airport..

Meanwhile, Mayor of London Boris Johnson has rejected renewed calls for a third runway at Heathrow but insists he is not "wedded" to the idea of an estuary airport at any price.

A report on airport capacity in the south east has been delayed but may contain references to any role that Manston, which is being sold by New Zealand owner Infratil, could play in meeting increasing demand.