Brexit: Aviation Safety Regime

Lord Chidgey Excerpts

Wednesday 17th January 2018 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[Lord Chidgey]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the warning from the United States Federal Aviation Administration that British aviation manufacturers may have to pay the United States to be able to export their products to the United States if Her Majesty’s Government do not negotiate a continuing role in the European Aviation Safety Agency or set up a British aviation safety regime before leaving the European Union.

[Lord Chidgey (LD)]

My Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question standing in my name on the Order Paper and I declare an interest as a companion of the Royal Aeronautical Society.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Transport (Baroness Sugg) (Con)]

My Lords, we have a very close and constructive relationship with the Federal Aviation Administration and have been working with them since early last year on arrangements to replace the EU-US bilateral aviation safety agreement when the UK leaves the European Union. We are working to ensure that as far as possible, existing arrangements for the recognition of safety certification between the UK and US continue to apply.

[Lord Chidgey]

I thank the Minister for that comforting reply but I wish to stress some points. We should not forget that the UK aerospace industry is a global leader, after the US, with a turnover of more than £32 billion. We have led the development of international safety regulations, under the European Aviation Safety Agency, EASA, and they are fully compliant with the American Federal Aviation Administration. If, on Brexit, we leave EASA, all bets will be off unless we negotiate continued membership of the agency. The alternative, which has been mentioned, of creating a whole new system is not supported by the Civil Aviation Authority, the aerospace industry, the maintenance facilities or the airlines. These are hugely important issues. The Government are on notice. Will they commit, therefore, to establishing a working group with the industry to maintain the regulatory alignment and ease the concerns of EASA?

[Baroness Sugg]

My Lords, we work closely with the aerospace industry and are very aware of their views on both what is needed for the sector and the desire for a speedy agreement. We will be representing these views in our negotiations with the EU and will continue to keep the sector updated as negotiations progress. There is a precedent for non-EU states such as Switzerland and Norway to participate in the EASA system and we continue to examine the suitability of such an arrangement. We have been clear that we seek a close and collaborative relationship with the EU on a range of issues, including aviation safety.