General News
Below are links to stories of general interest in relation to aviation and airports.
Hounslow Council leader says 9,000-home “Garden City” could happen even without Heathrow runway
The Leader of Hounslow City Council says a 9,000-home garden city could happen even without another Heathrow runway. He said a new Heathrow 'Garden City' in Hounslow is not dependant on a 3rd runway, and Hounslow Council remains opposed to the airport's expansion, with its official line being that it wants "a better not bigger Heathrow." There are fears, however, in some quarters that if a runway was approved, Hounslow (Labour led - since May 2014 Labour 49 seats, Conservative 11 seats) would support it and aim to obtain the maximum possible benefits. Heathrow chief executive John Holland-Kaye has implied that Heathrow would develop the "garden city" or at least be its cause - regenerating area of West London. Hounslow Council has been working with Heathrow on proposals for the new development, though details of where it might be built have yet to be released and council leader Steve Curran said it was "very early days". Hounslow Council has to build 3,000 new affordable homes in the borough by 2018. That's before a new runway increases housing demand. Hounslow says the scheme is critically dependant on better public transport infrastructure.
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Plane Stupid activists set up protest, locking themselves together, on Heathrow northern runway
At around 3.30am a group of 13 climate change activists from the group Plane Stupid cut a hole in the perimeter fence at Heathrow, and set up a protest on the northern runway. They set up a tripod of metal poles, and metal fencing panels, and locked themselves onto these. Some were attached by D locks around their necks, onto the fence. Others used arm locks (two people link arms, linked together with carabinas, inside a hard tube) to make it difficult for police to remove them. Police arrived on the scene shortly after the protest was set up. The first flights arrive at Heathrow from around 4.30am. Flights were delayed while the airport needed to shift runways. Six protesters were removed quite quickly. The protest was due to the recommendation of the Airports Commission that a 3rd runway should be built at Heathrow. Besides the serious negative impacts of the runway on noise, air pollution, destruction of Harmondsworth, huge costs to the taxpayer and considerable social disruption for miles around, the issue which has been glossed over is the CO2 emissions that the runway would create from greatly increased flights, many long-haul. The Commission itself was aware that a new runway would mean the UK could not achieve its aviation carbon cap, and make it less likely the UK could meet its legally binding carbon target for 2050.
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Surrey County Council leader says Heathrow runway would require 70,800 new homes and 56 new schools
Surrey County Council leader, David Hodge, says Surrey will require investment in infrastructure if there is a 3rd Heathrow runway. Speaking at the RunwaysUK conference David Hodge said that before a new runway is built 70,800 new homes need to be built in the local area surrounding Heathrow over the next 15 years. This area includes 14 boroughs surrounding Heathrow, including Spelthorne and Runnymede. This would also mean an additional 50 new primary schools and 6 secondary schools would be essential. He said: “We are not against expansion of either Gatwick or Heathrow… but we can only support expansion if the necessary investment in local infrastructure is put in place first.” There need to be significant transport improvements in the area for a Heathrow runway, including adding a 4th lane to the M25 between junctions 10 to 16. Also a new rail service to Waterloo from Heathrow, and more coach and bus links to Camberley, Woking and Guildford would be needed. He added that is not the only priority if there is expansion: “investment will need to go well beyond improving transport links.” [All this comes at a cost to the taxpayer - and would not be paid for by Heathrow.]
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Richmond parties unite to fight “deeply flawed” Heathrow expansion report
Conservative Council leader of Richmond, Lord True, launched a scathing attack on the "wretchedly predictable" Davies Commission recommendation for Heathrow expansion. He called for a cross-party campaign against a 3rd runway. Lord True cited failures to address noise pollution, air quality, security issues and a "questionable loading of the economic dice in favour of big Heathrow" in the "deeply flawed" report and said Richmond Council would never accept expansion in any form. Lord True lambasted the "contemptible" attitude of Davies committee members and quoted from a section of the report that claimed the negative effect of aircraft noise on people’s happiness was less than the negative effect associated with living in social housing. He said that was a shameful comparison. He called for a "fighting fund" to be set up to legally challenge expansion. Leader of Richmond’s Liberal Democrats, Gareth Roberts, was delighted to second a motion calling for a special standing committee to fight expansion. The LibDems want to work together on this, and Richmond will also work with other, similarly opposed local authorities.
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Elderly couple in Harmondsworth vow to fight Heathrow 3rd runway, which would see their home bulldozed
Armelle Thomas, wife of a 93-year-old WW2 veteran and Harmondsworth resident, is "incensed" after a Heathrow letter was delivered to her door 90 minutes after the Airport Commission's recommendation. The letter was a reminder about the compulsory purchase order on her home - just 90 minutes after the Davies recommendation for a 3rd Heathrow (destroying most of Harmondsworth) was announced. The couple face their home being bulldozed if the north-west runway goes ahead. Arnelle says there is “no way” they'd consider leaving the village her husband “fell in love with” when he first moved there in 1964. She was shocked that Heathrow had those letters out within just 90 minutes of the announcement. Armelle said: “If they actually try to bulldoze, my husband - who by then will be 97 - will be standing outside and we'll see what happens. We have no intention of moving. My husband has the right to die in this house and I promised him as much." A promise made is a promise kept.” Tommy fought in World War 2 with distinction, and now in his twilight years, he is going to be turned out of his home. This plays on his mind all the time, and the stress is not helping his health. All Heathrow is offering is 125% of the price of the homes to be demolished. Their house prices have been blighted for years by Heathrow.
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MEPs demand end to aviation tax breaks, but fudge investor protection in trade deal
MEPs have called for EU-US cooperation to end commercial aviation fuel tax exemptions, in line with the G-20 commitments to phase out fossil fuel subsidies. MEPs want clear guarantees that TTIP won’t undermine EU environmental standards and climate goals. The clear statement by the MEPS was in sharp contrast to the European Parliament’s ambiguity on Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS), where it called for an ‘alternative system’ but with the same purpose as ISDS – leaving EU negotiators none the wiser on a final agreement that would be acceptable to MEPs. While in the EU consumers, small businesses and hauliers pay an average of €0.48 in tax per litre for fuel, commercial airlines in the EU don’t pay any tax on jet fuel. This subsidy is fuelling air traffic growth, with aviation’s greenhouse gas emissions expected to increase 300% by 2050. The continuation of the €20 billion outdated fuel tax exemptions for aviation is an anachronism. The annual fossil fuel subsidy is being given for the most carbon-intensive form of transport. "With air passenger numbers set to grow 4% a year for the next 20 years, the aviation sector can well afford to pay its way.” The 10th negotiation round of TTIP negotiations will take place next week.
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Treasury opens consultation on protecting regional airports from impact of devolving APD
In the Summer 2015 Budget, the Chancellor has announced a short consultation (ends of 8th September) on options for supporting English regional airports from the impacts of Air Passenger Duty (APD) devolution. Sootland may remove APD, and so may Wales. Airports in the north of England are concerned they could lose passengers, to cheaper Scottish flights. The consultation sets out three options for changes to APD. The first is devolving APD within the UK, with powers over APD devolved fully or partially to local authorities within England. The second is varying APD rates within England, so central government would retain powers over APD for the English regions. The rates of UK APD would be varied according to specific criteria, resulting in different rates in different parts of the country. The third is to provide aid to regional airports within England, which have been adversely affected by the devolution of APD. This could be through the Regional Air Connectivity Fund, mainly for the smallest airports and those with up to 3 million passengers per year may be permitted investment aid only in ‘case specific circumstances’. Many airports likely to be affected could be too large to be eligible for aid.
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NEF shows how 3rd Heathrow runway might improve well-being for a minority now, at the price of reduced well-being for future generations
The Commission's report justified a new runway for the extra feelings of well-being that leisure flying brings people, stating: “Leisure flights have a high social value. Empirical analysis focused on passengers travelling on holiday or to visit friends and family has shown how the access to leisure travel affects mental health and wellbeing. The findings demonstrate these patterns of travel are associated with higher levels of life satisfaction, general and mental health, and happiness.” The research for the Commission was looking at trips for holidays or VFR. NEF suggests this was the wrong question, and the Commission should have considered how to achieve sustainable, equitable well-being for the whole population, and decreasing inequalities in well-being. As 70% of the total number of flights are taken by only 15% of the population, unsurprisingly, those who do fly are also, on average, richer. So increasing air travel for the affluent has the potential to maintain or even increase existing well-being inequalities. This means a trade-off between the well-being of a minority of wealthier-than-average people now, against both the well-being of poorer people – as well as the future generations who stand to lose the most from unsustainable policies now.
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John Holland-Kaye reluctant to accept conditions on Heathrow runway set by Airports Commission
The Airports Commission, in recommending a 3rd runway at Heathrow, set out a short set of conditions Heathrow would have to meet, to be allowed to build the runway. These conditions are not very onerous. These included a ban on all flights between 11.30pm and 6.00am, better air quality, a legally-enforced “noise envelope”, and that Heathrow should be held to its pledge to spend over £1bn on community compensation. And no 4th runway ever. But now, just days after the Commission's report, John Holland-Kaye, CEO of Heathrow, says the airport is “still assessing” the conditions, and “We’ll have to see how it fits into all the other things we’re doing," and "I’m sure there is a package in there that we can agree with our local communities, with the airlines and with Government." Quite why conditions to be imposed on a runway to protect the public need to be agreed by the airport itself, not just imposed on it, is a mystery. Lord Adonis said the noise envelope, which the commission said might stipulate that there should be “no overall increase above current levels”, was one of the “weaknesses” of the Commission's report. It is not even clear what it even means - “total incidence of noise, high levels of noise, noise in particular communities”. Manifestly adding another 50% more planes will increase the overall amount of noise.
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Heathrow hopes to make a monster 3-runway airport acceptable by building a 9,000 home “garden city”
At the RunwaysUK conference, Heathrow CEO John Holland-Kaye spoke of his plans to create a 3-runway “aerotropolis” around the airport, with a 9,000-home Heathrow Garden City. He said: “When you are relocating hotels and offices, why not put them next to the rail interchange, so that we can have fewer cars on the road — an aerotropolis, if you like .... If you are re-landscaping the airport boundary, why not link up the open spaces to create a green ribbon round the airport, with better local amenities .... and .... improve local flood defences? Why not improve the local road network and cycle paths?” He said west London needs regeneration just as much as east London, and the airport would do that. The development is understood to be planned for the Hounslow area. Heathrow hopes to get public transport up by over 10% in 4 years, to try and get the air pollution problem down low enough to be allowed a runway. And then: "We should get shovels in the ground by 2020 and the benefits of an expanded Heathrow in 2025.” Work was starting on gaining the planning consents needed for the development. Holland-Kaye said the airport may not agree to all the conditions for expansion proposed by the Airports Commission, but believes "an agreement could be struck on them."