Transport Secretary Alistair Darling said he has accepted a ruling that it was "irrational and unfair" to exclude Gatwick airport from its blueprint to build bigger airports.

Ministers had decided not to consider extending the Sussex airport because of a legal agreement made in 1979.

However, three councils challenged the move and won a High Court ruling.

A 1979 agreement barred expansion at Gatwick

Mr Darling said: "It would be wrong to extend the uncertainty that would inevitably result from a lengthy appeal process."

Consultation on the future of England's airports - which involve proposals for a new airport in Kent and expansion at Heathrow, Stansted and Luton - will now include Gatwick.

The deadline for the public to comment on the issue will be extended into next year.

This week Essex County Council, Medway Council, Kent County Council and local residents - who feared airport expansion in their own areas - succeeded in gaining a judicial review of the government's consultation process.

They had challenged the decision not to consider Gatwick as one of the airports to be expanded.