Hounslow councillor Barbara Reid has hit out at a top business leader for “misleading the public” over the arguments for expansion at Heathrow airport.

The lead member for aviation at Hounslow Council accused David Frost, the director general of the British Chamber of Commerce, of “staying suspiciously silent” about the number of companies that support alternatives to a third runway.

A new survey by the chamber revealed that more businesses back eco-friendly initiatives, including video conferencing.

Coun Reid said: "It is hard to understand why a respected business leader would mislead the public in this way.

"It appears that David Frost has used this new research to support his calls for a third runway when the survey didn't even ask businesses whether they supported expansion or not.

"What the survey did reveal was that three quarters of larger companies have introduced green alternatives to business travel, such as working from home and video conferencing, while 60 per cent of all businesses favour better alternatives to the road network such as high-speed rail.

"In contrast, only a third of respondents said Heathrow was important to their business and a previous survey by the London Chamber of Commerce found that four out of five London firms are actually against expanding Heathrow.

"The hundreds of thousands of people who say ‘no’ to Heathrow expansion will be wondering why businessmen like David Frost are staying suspiciously silent on the number of businesses who actually oppose expansion.”

She said it was important the public were aware of the survey, as it showed many British businesses were “flexible and adaptable”, finding innovative ways to cut down on unnecessary business travel.

The Congestion Question: A Business Transport Survey 2008 was published by the British Chamber of Commerce.

Mr Frost also called for the development of a high-speed rail network in the report, which would cut flights to Heathrow by more than 60,000 a year.