Mayor of London Boris Johnson has pledged to visit Kent International Airport at Manston after conceding that expanding the Kent terminal may be a better option than an estuary airport.Mr Johnson’s controversial proposal for an airport in the Thames off the North Kent coast has upset Tory led Medway and Kent County Council as well as environmental campaignersMedway Council leader Cllr Rodney Chambers and KCC leader Cllr Paul Carter believe Kent International Airport is a better solution to the problems of overcrowding at Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted.Speaking exclusively to the KM Group at the MIPIM property show in Cannes, South of France, Mr Johnson admits they “may well be right”.“I am certainly not ruling it out,” he said.

Mr Johnson said he would be interested in visiting Manston one day.He added: “The key thing is to stop the Government from going ahead with what I think is a thoroughly mistaken plan to have a third runway at Heathrow.”But Mr Johnson suggested he still likes the estuary idea.“There are plenty of advantages to it but we are not at the stage yet where we can say it’s a firm plan,” he said.

The Medway Messenger reported plans for an all-party delegation from Medway Council to discuss the estuary airport plan with thr Mayor at his headquarters at City Hall on London’s South Bank.

Speaking at the last full council meeting Cllr Chambers, said: “It would bring enormous environmental pressures to the whole area. Any suggestions for an estuary airport should be resisted at all costs.”