Andy McDonald MP/Jesse Norman MP

Jesse Norman MP: Heathrow Airport Limited has informed the Department of its proposals for an additional 25,000 aircraft traffic movements a year, and the Department’s understanding is that this will form part of a phased introduction of new capacity while the third runway is being built. Any request to increase its current planning cap would be subject to public consultation and the planning process and, as set out in the Airports National Policy Statement, it would need to include a suitable package of mitigations. The Secretary of State has had no conversations with the Civil Aviation Authority or the Planning Inspectorate on these proposals, but the Civil Aviation Authority will need to consider any such proposals from Heathrow Airport Limited, including with regard to safety, as a statutory consultee in the planning process. This would build on the Civil Aviation Authority’s initial safety review of Heathrow Airport Limited’s proposals before the publication of the Airports Commission’s Final Report, which found no material grounds for concern