General News
Below are links to stories of general interest in relation to aviation and airports.
CBI and KPMG say creaking UK transport is major threat to recovery – and we need a new runway
Between May and July, the CBI and KPMG conducted their third Infrastructure Survey, with 526 companies interviewed. The CBI and KPMG say, as they have often said before, that they believe Britain's economic recovery is being put at risk by continued Government inaction over energy and transport infrastructure. They claim there is growing dissatisfaction with the Coalition’s failure to take big decisions on airport capacity, nuclear power or new roads – despite ministerial rhetoric on the importance of such investment. The CBI wants to see a commitment in party manifestos to implement the findings of the Airports Commission on new runways - so far none of the parties have agreed to be tied to the Commission's findings. They say that in the short term, improved road access to all the UK's airports is essential, "boosting demand for existing capacity and making new routes more viable." The CBI has repeatedly called for Heathrow to be allowed another runway, claiming this is needed for links with new markets, and saying the UK needs a hub with space to grow.
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Citizens’ Initiatives across the EU invited to sign the “Taming Aviation” petition to European Parliament
Some airport campaigners in Austria, who have worked with local citizen initiatives, have put together a website called "Taming Aviation". It is a Europe-wide movement of citizens and citizen initiatives. It has emerged from concern about aircraft noise, its impacts on health, its impacts on local communities - including the value of homes that are seriously over-flown - and the privileged position of the aviation industry in relation to regulation and tax. Taming Aviation has a petition to the European Parliament, which it welcomes citiizens' initiatives (not merely individuals) across the EU to sign. The petition asks the EU to ban night flights for an 8 hour period at airports across Europe, to allow an uninterrupted 8 hour period for quiet sleep, for good health. It also asks for an end to zero-rating for VAT of airline tickets, and for an energy tax to be charged on aviation fuel (which is not currently taxed). It also asks for the EU ETS to be reinstated as soon as possible, [that will be decided shortly, depending on the outcome of ICAO negotiations] and for an end to state subsidies of various sorts to European airports.
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Packed public meeting in Stanwell Moor hears of threat of 850 house demolitions, noise and blight from Heathrow runway plans
Over 200 people attended a meeting in Stanwell Moor Village Hall, organised through the residents' association, on 3rd September, with standing room only. The people of Stanwell Moor face eviction and the demolition of their houses, and those in Stanwell face blight and an uncertain future - the possibility of intense aircraft noise and air pollution if another runway is allowed. There were people queuing outside trying to get in, such was the demand to hear what the Heathrow airport operators had in mind for their area. Nigel Milton, Heathrow's director of policy, said 850 homes in Stamwell Moor village would be demolished to make way for a 3,500 metre runway - if it was ever allowed. Kathy Croft, chairman of the Stanwell Moor Residents’ Association, said: “It will then be for the next government to act. Kwasi Kwarteng was invited but he gave his apologies ... ". The problem of large areas of blight that will inevitably be caused if the Airports Commission put Heathrow on their short list in December is a very real one. There will be another meeting on 18th September, organised by Spelthorne Borough Council.
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Concern that DEFRA consultation on air quality will close hundreds of air quality monitoring stations
Defra has a consultation (ending on 13th September) on local air quality management. Currently, when a local authority finds an area in its jurisdiction in breach of national legal air quality objectives it can declare an AQMA (Air Quality Management Area), which enables the authority to apply for special funding to monitor and tackle the problem. After an AQMA is declared, a council is then obliged to produce an Air Quality Action Plan for submission to Defra. However, the new consultation document states that meeting EU limit values is a ‘significant challenge’ and it local authorities should focus more on reducing the public health impacts of poor air quality rather than to continue their current focus on monitoring. If the government succeed in pushing this through it would remove the responsibility for local authorities to assess air pollution it will no longer be possible for people to find out what air quality is like in their local area. It also would no longer be possible to hold local authorities to account if air pollution is at unsafe levels. Environmental lawyers, ClientEarth, think a big display of public opposition could make all the difference to how the government responds.
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“Back Heathrow” campaign formed, by the airport, to demonstrate – and boost – local support for a 3rd runway
"Back Heathrow" is a lobby group that has recently been formed, by supporters of a third Heathrow runway. Its aim is to get people who favour Heathrow expansion to declare their support, and "give a voice to the hundreds of thousands of residents who support Heathrow." It has been set up with funding from the airport, and 400,000 local tabloid-style propaganda newspapers have been delivered to local communities surrounding the airport. The text of the paper is shown below. It pushes the scaremongering idea that there is a risk of Heathrow shutting down, causing the loss of "114,000 jobs" and that "200 of the UK's biggest companies may move from Heathrow." In reality, there is little prospect of Heathrow closing - and this is just a tactic to get publicity and worry people. Back Heathrow have written to local councillors, giving them the misleading impressing that it is a "new community campaign". It isn't. It is organised by the industry, not by the community. Hacan said the formation of "Back Heathrow" was “the actions of a desperate organisation, not confident of the arguments it is making.”
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Stansted campaigners urge Airports Commission to provide safeguards for communities against blight
Stop Stansted Expansion (SSE) is one of seven airport campaign groups who have joined forces in writing to Sir Howard Davies, Chairman of the Airports Commission, calling upon him to safeguard local residents against airport-related blight. The Commission is due to produce an interim report at the end of this year and, if it concludes that the UK needs more airport capacity, it will publish a short-list of options. The Commission's final report won't be published until mid-2015, after the next general election and it will then be for the Government of the day to take any final decisions. During that time, and perhaps for longer, the areas selected will suffer blight, and great uncertainty. The last time that Stansted was short-listed for major expansion, in 2002, £570 million was wiped off local house prices in the first 18 months of the threat, affecting an area of about 150 square miles. There is now the prospect of history repeating itself. Those who are promoting airport expansion projects must take some responsibility for the consequences. They cannot simply be allowed to dine out for free on their airport expansion dreams, leaving local residents to pick up the tab.
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AirportWatch calls on Airports Commission to safeguard communities under threat of blight from airport proposals
AirportWatch - which includes campaign groups at a number of airports facing the threat of expansion - have joined forces in writing to Sir Howard Davies, Chairman of the Airports Commission, calling upon him to safeguard all the threatened communities against blight. The Commission is due to produce an interim report at the end of this year and, if it concludes that the UK needs more airport capacity, it will publish a shortlist of options. The Commission's final report and recommendations won't be published until mid-2015, after the next general election, and it will then be for the Government of the day to take any final decisions. As soon as such a list is published, every single one of the areas under threat will be hit by generalised blight and people will immediately experience not only stress and uncertainty, but difficulties in selling their homes. The campaigners' letter asks Sir Howard "to make it a pre-condition for being shortlisted for the promoter of an airport development proposal to undertake to introduce fair and reasonable arrangements to address the problem of generalised blight arising from their proposal within three months of being shortlisted and to operate such arrangements for a minimum period of two years."
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RSPB email action to write to Sir Howard Davies, to remind him not to forget biodiversity, habitat and climate
The RSPB had an email action, to ask people to write to Sir Howard Davies, the Chairman of the Airports Commission, to remind him of the biodiversity, habitat and climate change implications of his committee's decisions on airports. Proposals to build new airports or expand existing ones could have devastating impacts on some of our most vulnerable wildlife and habitats, and our ability to tackle climate change. The Thames estuary is under threat from airport development, and is a globally recognised and protected area as it is a vital home for wildlife, including hundreds of thousands of wintering wildfowl and wading birds. Climate change is the greatest threat to wildlife and biodiversity, and carbon emissions from aviation are increasing rapidly. The RSPB believes there should be no further aviation expansion unless the Government can demonstrate how such expansion can take place within the UK’s legally binding climate change limits. The email action closed at the end of September, at the closing date for submissions.
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Severnside airport, proposed by John Borkowski, would require closure of Bristol and Cardiff airports
One of the proposals for a huge new airport for the UK was for a Severnside Airport near Newport put forward by John Borkowski of MSP Solutions. There have been comments that his scheme is "far-fetched" and the plans would depend on the sale of the Welsh government-owned Cardiff airport and the privately-owned Bristol Airport - along with the transfer of their passengers and airlines to Severnside. Bristol called the plan unrealistic. But John Borkowski said there are too many regional airports and a larger hub would boost the economy. Previous proposals for a "Severnside" airport were rejected in 2003 by the UK government. Mr Borkowski's plan would include a 4,000m main runway with road links to the M4, sea links and rail links to the main London-Wales mainline. He says 1,000 people would be employed, while there is also potential for 10,000 support jobs, and the airport could handle 14 million passengers a year initially to around 40 million by 2050. Mr Borkowski said that with the potential closure of Heathrow in the future, (!?) it was important to consider developing a larger airport for the south west.
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Anti-APD campaign wastes no time in lobbying new shadow minister, Lilian Greenwood
After the resignation of Jim FitzPatrick as a Labour opposition transport spokesman on 29th August over Syria, his shadow aviation responsibilities have been taken over by Lilian Greenwood (MP for Nottingham South). The aviation industry has lost no time in lobbying her on Air Passenger Duty. British Air Transport Association (BATA) say her new role "offers an ideal opportunity for the opposition to put pressure on the government between now and the next election to review the impact of APD on the UK economy." While APD does no harm the UK economy, it has a very slight impact on demand for air tickets (it is only £13 for a return flight to anywhere in Europe), so the aviation industry is deeply opposed. All the lobbying ignores the fact that the Treasury charges APD because air travel pays no VAT and aviation does not pay fuel duty. People on internal return flights within the UK pay £26 in APD as each part of the trip is charged. Scotland has long lobbied to get APD devolved to the Scottish Government, with businesses campaigning to get APD removed.