BAA plans to build a third runway at Heathrow Airport could mean an extra 500 flights per day over London. The government now admits that a third runway would mean over 700,000 flights using the airport per year. Overall, the number of UK air passengers is expected to rise from 113 million now to 300 million per year by 2030.

Yet polls reveal that only 18% of people back the expansion plans. 62% back a reduction in short-haul flights from Heathrow and 70% of people say that government should take the lead in tackling climate change. The report, Aviation and Climate Change: Public Opinion and the Scope for Action, by Woodnewton Associates, found a majority of people are willing to change their own behaviour to tackle climate change but expect the Government to take the lead.

The Government has already backed the plans for both a third runway and a sixth terminal. However,the government’s consultation documents – totalling hundreds of pages – did not provide an estimate of the impact on CO2 emissions. In his report, Chris Goodall has offered a tentative figure of about 16m tonnes as the potential maximum impact of the proposed expansion. After multiplying by 2.7 to account for the other pollutants created by aviation, the increase takes the total UK emissions from aviation up to 144m tonnes of CO2 equivalent.

In the same week that the consultation paper was published, Gordon Brown made a statement saying that total UK emmissions from all sources may need to fall to no more than 155m tonnes by 2050.

The disjunction between government policies on aviation and climate change is startling.

In a new survey, 57% of executives said that Tuesday is the most productive day of the week for employees. Monday was the second most popular. The poll included the views of 150 senior executives with the nation’s 1,000 companies. Monday seems to be a day for meetings; and on Fridays people have half an eye on the door.

Executives were asked “In your opinion, on which day of the week are employees generally most productive?” Their responses:

Monday 12%

Tuesday 57%

Wednesday 11%

Thursday 11%

Friday 3%

Don’t Know 6%

Total 100%

The research was undertaken by an independent research firm and developed by Accountemps, who offer the following pieces of advice form maintaining a high level of productivity through the entire week:

Make a plan. Spend 10 to 15 minutes at the beginning of each day mapping out your desired accomplishments. Prioritize the tasks that are most important to the business.

Sharpen your focus. People are more productive when working for an extended period in the same mental mode, as opposed to changing gears frequently. Try to cluster tasks that require similar effort or resources in the same time frame.

Limit distractions. It can be tempting to review e-mail each time a message arrives. However, unless your job requires an immediate response, it’s often best to check your inbox periodically throughout the day.

Don’t delay. Even peak performers occasionally put off working on unpleasant or overwhelming assignments. One effective way to overcome procrastination is to break a project into smaller, more manageable tasks.

Recharge. Taking short breaks throughout the day can help you replenish your energy and fight fatigue.