Plans for a second runway at Stansted Airport, Essex, are unlikely to go ahead if Labour wins the General Election after the party pledged not to pursue the scheme.

In its 2010 manifesto, the Labour Party said it would continue to back a third runway at London's Heathrow Airport but revealed it "will not allow additional runways to proceed at any other airports" if returned to power for a fourth successive term. The development of a second runway at Stansted Airport, which had previously been advocated by Labour, has been kept on hold after communities secretary John Denham said a public inquiry could not take place before the election.

An inquiry into the scheme had originally been delayed after a ruling by the Competition Commission, which ordered BAA to sell Stansted - a ruling that has since been quashed on appeal.