Government Aviation Policy
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Agenda item no. 7(c) GATCOM 18 OCTOBER 2012 GOVERNMENT AVIATION POLICY REPORT BY SECRETARIAT SUMMARY This report provides an update on the new aviation ministerial team and recent developments on the preparation of the Government’s aviation policy framework. It also considers the DfT’s consultation on the draft Aviation Policy Framework and sets out for consideration GATCOM’s suggested response. GATCOM is asked to approve the response appended to this report. 1. BACKGROUND 1.1 In March 2011 the Government published its Scoping Document “Developing a Sustainable Framework for UK Aviation”. The objective of this document was to identify the issues and accrue evidence to inform the development of draft framework for consultation. 1.2 Following the scoping document exercise the DfT produced a draft Aviation Policy Framework (APF) for consultation which was published in July 2012. The draft APF sets out the Government’s developing policy position in relation to a number of issues, but particularly aviation’s contribution to economy, noise, CO2 and community engagement. The consultation runs until 31 October. 3. During this time the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Aviation held a short Inquiry into how Government policy can help to maintain and enhance the UK aviation industry’s international competitiveness and its contribution to the economy. Its report was published in August and can be found on the UKACCs website at: http://www.ukaccs.info/aapgreport0812.pdf. 1.3 Since the launch of the draft APF consultation the Prime Minister carried out his first major Cabinet reshuffle and a new Ministerial team is now in place (see section 2 below). A number of other developments have since followed the Cabinet reshuffle, including the establishment of an Independent Commission on Aviation Connectivity, and these are summarised below. 1.4 The DfT has confirmed that the draft APF remains an important document and will set the parameters within which the Commission will consider the airport capacity issue and make recommendations. GATCOM is asked to consider the suggested draft response to the consultation appended to this report. 2. CABINET RESHUFFLE INSOFAR AS IT RELATES TO DFT MINISTERS 2.1 On 4 September, the Prime Minster carried out his first major reshuffle of his cabinet making 13 changes in total. The Secretary of State for Transport is now the Rt. Hon. Patrick McLoughlin MP1 with: • Rt. Hon. Simon Burns MP - Minister of State for Transport • Norman Baker MP – Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport 1 Conservative MP for Derbyshire Dale, former Chief Whip and was Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State in 1989, and served in the Department for Transport until 1992 • Stephen Hammond - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport The aviation portfolio currently remains with the Minster for State, Rt. Hon Simon Burns. 3. RECENT ACTIVITY ON DEVELOPING THE NATIONAL AVIATION POLICY Independent Commission on Aviation Connectivity 3.1 The Government believes that maintaining the UK’s status as a leading global aviation hub is fundamental to the UK’s long term international competitiveness. But the Government is also mindful of the need to take full account of the social, environmental and other impacts of any expansion in airport capacity. 3.2 Recognising the difficult debate around future runway capacity in the South East and the fact that Heathrow the UK’s largest and only hub airport is already operating at capacity, Gatwick will be full early in the next decade, and spare capacity at Stansted is forecast to run out in the early 2030s, the Government announced that an Independent Commission on Aviation Connectivity would be set up. 3.3 The Government has asked Sir Howard Davies2 to chair the Commission which will identify and recommend options for maintaining the UK’s status as an international hub for aviation. 3.4 The Commission will: • examine the scale and timing of any requirement for additional capacity to maintain the UK’s position as Europe’s most important aviation hub • identify and evaluate how any need for additional capacity should be met in the short-, medium- and long-term 3.5 The Commission will compile an interim report for ministers no later than the end of 2013 setting out its assessment of the evidence on the nature, scale and timing of the steps needed to maintain the UK’s global hub status. This preliminary report will recommend immediate actions to improve the use of existing runway capacity in the next five years – consistent with credible long-term options. 3.6 The Commission will then publish by the summer of 2015 a final report, for consideration by both the Government and the Opposition. This will provide an assessment of the options for meeting the UK’s international connectivity needs, including their economic, social and environmental impact as well as its recommendation(s) for the optimum approach to meeting any need. 3.7 The final report will also provide the context and material to help the Government prepare a National Policy Statement on aviation for planning purposes. The Government has stressed that any decision on new capacity at any existing airport or the development of new facilities will be taken by the next administration post 2015. 3.8 Further details on the full membership of the Commission and its terms of reference are to be issued shortly. The Department for Transport’s representative, Tim May, has been asked to provide an update at the meeting. Call for Evidence on UK International Air Connectivity 3.9 In the DfT’s draft aviation policy framework it states that the Government intends to publish later this year a Call for Evidence on maintaining the UK’s international aviation connectivity with a focus on both the medium and long term. The Call for Evidence was due to be issued in September but in view of the Government’s decision to set up an Independent Commission, the publication has been delayed. It is likely that the 2 Sir Howard Davies - a former deputy governor of the Bank of England and director of the London School of Economics Independent Commission will as part of its work undertake the Call for Evidence. Tim May, DfT, will provide an update at the meeting. House of Commons Transport Committee 3.10 The House of Commons’ Transport Committee has also launched its own Inquiry into airport capacity in the UK. On 13 September, the terms of reference for the Committee’s Inquiry were published. More detail about this Inquiry is considered at agenda item no. 7(d). London Mayor Aviation Inquiry 3.11 London Mayor, Boris Johnson, announced earlier this month that he was launching an Inquiry into UK airport capacity which is expected to be completed two years earlier than the Independent Commission’s Inquiry. As members will be aware, the London Mayor favours a new hub airport in the Thames Estuary over a third runway at London Heathrow. 4. DFT CONSULTATION ON THE DRAFT AVIATION POLICY FRAMEWORK 4.1 The Government has split its consideration of its future aviation/airports policy in two parts. The first part is the draft APF. This looks at issues such as climate change, noise and other environmental impacts, and collaboration between organisations. The consultation document sets out a high-level strategy, including the Government’s overall objectives for aviation and its policies to achieve those objectives. The Government seeks views and information relating to a set of questions. These are presented in the Appendix to this report, together with the draft responses to the questions. 4.2 The second part of the Government’s consideration will focus on future airport capacity. Comments on airport capacity are outside the scope of the current consultation, which the Government intends to address through the newly announced Independent Commission. 4.3 The draft APF is underpinned by two core principles: collaboration: the Government believes that by working together with the industry, regulators, experts, local communities and others at all levels – international, national and local – it will be better able to identify workable solutions to challenges and share the benefits of aviation in a fairer way than in the past. [One of the suggested ways of achieving this is through strengthening the role of airport consultative committees]; and transparency: the Government states that it is crucial, in facilitating improved collaboration, to have clear and independent information and processes in place. 4.4 The consultation questions are set out in the Appendix, together with the draft responses which take into account the advice of GATCOM’s Independent Technical Adviser, the views received from members and the views of the GATCOM Steering Group. Members will recall that a copy of the suggested draft response was emailed to all GATCOM members on 20 September 2012 with a request that any views be forwarded to the Secretariat so that they can be reported to and taken into account by the Steering Group. GATCOM is asked to consider the revised draft response (significant revisions shown in bold italics) set out in the Appendix. 4.5 As part of the DfT’s consultation a number of stakeholders engagement sessions have been arranged. The Secretariat attended the stakeholder event on 9 October targeted specifically at local authority stakeholders and airport consultative committees. The DfT also held separate events for industry, business and environmental stakeholders. 4.6 The DfT also held a specific event to discuss technical aspects of the draft APF on 8 October which was attended by GATCOM’s lead member for noise, Alan Jones, and GATCOM’s Independent Technical Adviser, Ros Howell. 4.7 In respect of the night flights regime at the three London airports, it was the Government’s intention to launch Stage 1 of the consultation for the next regime this Autumn.