SOUTHEND Airport’s expansion is showing the way forward for airports nationwide, according transport minister Theresa Villiers.

Speaking as she officially opened a new £15million railway station at the airport, the Tory minister suggested Southend could be viewed as a model for other regional airports.

Ms Villiers dismissed the idea of a major airport in the Thames estuary or expansion at Heathrow.

Instead, she said expanding regional facilities such as Southend would ease pressure on London’s main airports.

The minister added: “We are not looking at building new airports.

“That is not an option. We want to make the most of the airports we already have, and Southend is a prime example of how that can be done.”

Forecasts published by the Government last month, suggest London’s main airports will be stretched to breaking point by 2040.

The Department for Transport predicts 185 million passengers will be using Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted, Luton and London City every year by then.

If those airports are not to build new runways airlines will have little choice but to turn their attention to regional airports such as Southend to handle business travellers and tourists.

London mayor Boris Johnson has previously advocated building a new multi-runway airport in the Thames estuary to ease the pressure on the city’s main hubs.

Ms Villiers’s message at Southend was that this was not an option.

She said: “There is a very important role for smaller airports to play.

“There has long been an airport in Southend and there is a real opportunity to take up some of the slack which may appear elsewhere.

“This is what we want to see. Southend is seizing the opportunity which has been presented to it.”

Alastair Welch, the airport’s managing director, welcomed Ms Villiers’s words.

He said: “She has had a tour of the new facilities and has been impressed by what she has seen. It is very gratifying to have her support and help. We are looking forward to the future.”