Draft Aviation (Consumers) (Amendment) Regulations 2023

Guy Opperman Excerpts

Tuesday 21st November 2023 General Committees

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport (Guy Opperman)]

I beg to move,

That the Committee has considered the draft Aviation (Consumers) (Amendment) Regulations 2023.

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Twigg. The regulations were laid before the House on 16 October. The Under-Secretary of State for Transport, my hon. Friend the Member for South Cambridgeshire (Anthony Browne), who is responsible for aviation, sends his apologies. He is attending a sustainable aviation conference—please, no jokes about his taking flights. I hope to be an able stand-in.

The purpose of the instrument is to restate, under the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Act 2023, the key principles of retained EU case law relating to regulation No. 261/2004. It will help aviation consumers to receive the same protections and rights to compensation that they currently have when they experience flight disruption. Regulation No. 261/2004, which will become assimilated law at the end of the year, sets out the full rules on compensation and assistance for air passengers in the event of their being denied boarding, flight cancellation or long delay. Without the draft regulations before the Committee today, important principles that protect consumers in the UK would clearly be lost.

The territorial application of the statutory instrument is England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, as civil aviation is a reserved matter. The Joint Committee on Statutory Instruments has considered this instrument and did not report it to the House at its meeting on 25 October. Under article 438, paragraph 3, of the trade and co-operation agreement, the UK and the EU

“shall consult each other on any matter related to”—

aviation—

“consumer protection, including their planned measures”.

The Department for Transport consulted the EU on the provisions of the instrument, and I am pleased to say that the EU had no comments on it.

I hope the Committee understands the need for and the importance of this instrument, and I commend—

[Sir Greg Knight (East Yorkshire) (Con)]

The regulations and the explanatory memorandum refer to the tariff payable in compensation. Is that automatically uplifted with inflation, or will further recourse have to be made to Parliament to secure any inflationary increase?

[Guy Opperman]

That is an outstandingly good question, in reply to which I am delighted to say that I propose to get the aviation Minister to write to my right hon. Friend in quite a lot of detail on that point. If he bears with me, however, I might be able to respond to his question in my closing comments.

I commend the instrument to the Committee.

--- Later in debate ---

[Guy Opperman]

I shall attempt to answer the hon. Gentlemen’s questions, but I will start with the fact that Hadrian’s Wall and the sea-to-sea route are in part in my constituency, as is “Sycamore gap”—or it was, until someone who we sincerely hope will be caught and sent to prison decided to use a chainsaw to cut it down.

The hon. Gentleman said there was a lack of support for airports during covid. With great respect, I have to push back on that. I have the privilege, with the hon. Member for Newcastle upon Tyne North (Catherine McKinnell), to represent Newcastle Airport. I know, because we meet regularly, that the airport was given huge amounts of taxpayer support during covid. It would have genuinely struggled without that support from the Treasury, as would many other businesses.

The hon. Gentleman talked about the NATS failure on 28 August. Clearly, that is a matter for an independent investigation, and like him, I await the results.

As for consultation, the consumer policy was consulted on in January 2022 and responded to in June 2023. Industry and consumer groups were engaged with in an ongoing series of workshops. I think a large number of consumer groups were involved, but I will get the aviation Minister to write to the hon. Gentleman giving chapter and verse on that—when one is not the Minister, one is always keen for others to write.

I shall endeavour to answer the question posed by my right hon. Friend the Member for East Yorkshire. The rates are not uprated with inflation or downrated with deflation; however, the ongoing consultation on regulation No. 261/2004 might consider that matter, and I will ensure that the details are sent to my hon. Friend the aviation Minister.

Question put and agreed to.