Have you heard our neighbouring borough of Richmond is asking residents – in the form of a referendum – whether they agree with the whole Heathrow expansion issue and the whole third/fourth runway palaver?

And, as avid Surrey Comet readers, you’ll also know the 2M Group of councils – which includes Kingston – released maps recently showing that Surbiton residents may also have to deal with roaring aircraft for the first time if Heathrow expands.

We always hear the same arguments from the pro-expansion lobby. Which is if we don’t expand the airport then business will suffer, the area will go into decline, a tempest will engulf the area, earthquakes will cause tsunamis and a large section of the population will be swept away (OK, I may have made some of those up).

I’ve always seen the “business will suffer” argument to be somewhat specious.

It’s like saying “if we don’t build a nuclear power station on Kingston’s Fairfield then we’ll miss out on jobs”. Oh, right, we’d better do it then.

And all this talk of a third – and now a fourth – runway. Where is it all going to end that’s what I want to know.

I see the whole debate like that of a Gillette razor. Can you remember when razors just had one blade? Then they added another one (The first shaves incredibly close, the second even closer).

Now it’s up to five blades I think. They’re never happy are they? What’s the fifth blade do anyway? Shave underneath the skin or something?

So once we’ve got a third and then a fourth runway they’ll be wanting more.

Still, on the plus side, if Heathrow keeps on expanding it may eventually reach Kingston and it won’t take as long to get to the airport. Every cloud eh?