The U.K. government has provided provisional approval to the creation of a second runway at Gatwick Airport outside London.

Britain is inclined to approve the expansion of its second largest airport Gatwick, the government said on Thursday, over objections from environmentalists and during a push on infrastructure to drive economic growth.

Gareth Bacon, the shadow transport secretary, said it represented an “abject failure” on the part of the Government, which had “fallen at the first hurdle” in overruling blockers to unleash a flood of infrastructure projects – including a potential third runway at Heathrow.