Anyone who has flown through the fabulous new airports in Kong Kong, Bangkok or Singapore knows that Heathrow is an embarrassment and a national disgrace. Terminal 5 maybe a great shopping mall, and you may now get your bags on time, but you'll still probably miss your flight because you've been stuck in a jam on the M25, or delayed in the oppressive heat of the Piccadilly Line.

And if you live under the flight path, and that's everyone in the west of London and most of the rest of the south-east of England, you're subject to the daily abuse of noise and fuel pollution. A Third runway can only make that intolerably worse.

Getting to Heathrow from Birmingham, Leeds or Manchester is a challenge of almost historic proportions. No wonder many Brummies, like me, choose to fly to Schiphol in Amsterdam direct from our regional airports for international connections rather than try to reach Heathrow by car, bus or train.

Gridlock Britain needs a joined up solution, and a solution that properly consults with stakeholders, including business from across the country.

In 2008 George Osborne proposed a fundamental solution to Britain's railway network which is operating, in many cases, way beyond capacity. Osborne's proposal for a new fast track railway to link London's major airport with Birmingham, Manchester and Leeds was visionary and far removed from do nothing Labour who have dithered over transport policy with nothing achieved in 11 years.

Last week I was one of a group from the business community, council leaders, parliamentary candidates, and council leaders from the West Midlands who met Phil Bradbourn MEP to share some possible solutions to Britain's transport crisis.

Our group proposed a practical combination of high-speed rail and the expansion of flight capacity for Britain. It's a Conservative solution, and one steeped in pragmatism and social responsibility. We are committed to backing Boris in his call for a new international airport which will replace Heathrow and will be situated in the Thames Gateway. Together this joined up transport strategy would offer a more environmentally responsible and safe way to improve the whole country's transport network.

Connecting a new airport on the Thames estuary with a high speed rail link to the Channel Tunnel and a new line north to Birmingham, Manchester and Leeds is likely to generate huge economic benefits for the West Midlands, North West and Yorkshire, both in terms of business competitiveness and passenger convenience.

A fast track rail link to Birmingham would mean that Birmingham Airport is less than an hour from Central London. That could mean that there is no need to expand either Gatwick or Stansted, but rather use existing regional capacity to a fuller extent.

If Gordon Brown and Geoff Hoon do bungle the Heathrow announcement on Thursday caving in to short term interests, Conservatives should still plan for a more joined up and green strategy of a fast rail link to a new Thames Airport. Missing either chance could be a sentence to yet more years of traffic queues and pollution at Heathrow.

If they do bottle this decision, Britain may be confined to an airport in the wrong place that fails to serve the whole Nation well. Get it right and travel could again be the joy that it is in so many emerging economies, and give Britain a new competitive advantage over the rest of Europe and the World.