Asked by: Lord Forsyth of Drumlean (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the Scottish Government about (1) the provision of investment funds to (a) Ferguson Marine, (b) BiFab, and (c) Prestwick Airport, and (2) the nationalisation of Ferguson Marine; and what was the total cost of these measures to the Exchequer.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The UK government has had no discussion with the Scottish Government on this because responsibility for funding to ports and airports is a devolved matter.
Asked by: Lord Forsyth of Drumlean (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Vere of Norbiton on 3 June (HL15919), what evidence they have for the competitiveness of airfares between London and Scotland; whether they will provide the figures for the cost of such flights which informed their assessment that “Scotland is well-served by air services into London”; whether they have conducted a comparative analysis of the costs of flights from Scotland to all London airports; and if not, why not.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
I refer to the answer of 3 June (HL15919), which states that the aviation sector operates in a competitive, commercial environment, investing to attract passengers and responding to demand when determining routes to operate. It is therefore not for the Department to carry out this type of assessment, nor to comment on whether there is sufficient competition.
I can, however, confirm that CAA data for 2018 shows that the four largest airports in Scotland (Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Inverness and Glasgow) have flights to two or more airports in the London system, with flights operated by multiple airlines.
In addition, the UK Government, in partnership with the Scottish Government and Dundee City Council, provide financial support for an air route from Dundee to Stansted through a public service obligation. Scotland will also benefit from an expanded Heathrow, where there will be further opportunity to enhance connections to the country’s biggest hub airport.
This information, which is already in the public domain, shows that there is sufficient competition for air routes between London and Scotland.
Asked by: Lord Forsyth of Drumlean (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Vere of Norbiton on 3 June (HL15919), whether they will now answer the question put.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
I refer to the answer of 3 June (HL15919), which states that the aviation sector operates in a competitive, commercial environment, investing to attract passengers and responding to demand when determining routes to operate. It is therefore not for the Department to carry out this type of assessment, nor to comment on whether there is sufficient competition.
I can, however, confirm that CAA data for 2018 shows that the four largest airports in Scotland (Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Inverness and Glasgow) have flights to two or more airports in the London system, with flights operated by multiple airlines.
In addition, the UK Government, in partnership with the Scottish Government and Dundee City Council, provide financial support for an air route from Dundee to Stansted through a public service obligation. Scotland will also benefit from an expanded Heathrow, where there will be further opportunity to enhance connections to the country’s biggest hub airport.
This information, which is already in the public domain, shows that there is sufficient competition for air routes between London and Scotland.
Asked by: Lord Forsyth of Drumlean (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the sufficiency of competition in the provision of air services from Scotland to London.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The aviation sector operates in a competitive, commercial environment, investing to attract passengers and responding to demand when determining routes to operate.
Scotland is well-served by air services into London, with at least two airlines operating direct services from each of Scotland’s four largest airports into the London system.
Asked by: Lord Forsyth of Drumlean (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government why it has been proposed that the British Transport Police control room in Birmingham should be closed down and all control rooms replaced by one control room in Camden.
Answered by Baroness Sugg
Responsibility for the resourcing and organisation of the British Transport Police (BTP) lies with the British Transport Police Authority (BTPA) rather than with HM Government.
The BTP currently operates two control rooms; one in London and one in Birmingham. Whilst this model has served the Force effectively, BTP considers that it is timely to re-examine this structure and deliver its command and control taking account of current and predicted demand. A number of Home Office forces and other organisations operate successfully with a single site control room.
Asked by: Lord Forsyth of Drumlean (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Sugg on 20 December (HL12400), why the domestic services considered in the paper are limited to Heathrow; why services from London City Airport are not subject to review; and what assessment they have made of the distribution of landing slots between carriers.
Answered by Baroness Sugg
Heathrow Airport is mentioned specifically as there has been a fall in domestic air connectivity into Heathrow in recent years due to the lack of capacity. Expansion at Heathrow Airport will mean for the first time a significant number of additional slots being released at a severely congested airport in the UK.
The Government has also confirmed that it is supportive of all UK airports beyond Heathrow making best use of their existing runways, subject to proposals being assessed in light of environmental and economic impacts.
The current slot allocation process is set out in EU and UK legislation and is based on the guiding principles set out in IATA’s Worldwide Slot Guidelines. Slots in the UK are allocated by an independent co-ordinator so the Government does not complete assessments of the distribution of landing slots across UK airports. However, as I set out in my answer of 18 December, the Government is currently seeking views on reforming the process for allocating new slots through the Aviation Strategy Green Paper. The paper was published in December and the consultation closes on 11 April.
Asked by: Lord Forsyth of Drumlean (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Sugg on 18 December (HL12286), what steps they are taking to improve transport connectivity between the regions and nations of the UK; and how those steps relate to the allocation of landing slots at UK airports.
Answered by Baroness Sugg
The government recognises how important transport networks, including regional airport connectivity, can be to their local areas and surrounding regions.
The Aviation Strategy Green Paper ‘Aviation 2050’, has renewed the government’s commitment to support routes into London that may be at risk, commercially, through the establishment of Public Service Obligations (PSOs). The paper also considers what further role the government should have in supporting growth at our regional airports.
In addition, the government has set out a clear ambition that at least 14 domestic routes operate from an expanded Heathrow Airport. The Green Paper has identified how Heathrow, with the support of government if needed, can make this happen.
The government is also seeking views on reforming the process for allocating new slots in the Green Paper, with the objectives of facilitating competition and increasing both domestic and international connectivity.
Asked by: Lord Forsyth of Drumlean (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Sugg on 10 December (HL11929), whether they undertook an assessment of British Airways fares and service availability between Scotland and London City airport in order to reach the conclusion that passengers are best served by the current policy.
Answered by Baroness Sugg
No such assessment has been made. Airlines operate in a commercial market, and it is for them to determine which airports they operate based on their own assessment of costs and passenger demand. Government cannot dictate to airlines which services they operate or get involved in regulating the level of fares set by airlines operating in the UK.
Asked by: Lord Forsyth of Drumlean (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they plan to ask the Competition and Markets Authority to consider conducting an inquiry into passenger air services linking Scotland to London City Airport.
Answered by Baroness Sugg
The Government has no such plans. We believe that air passengers are best served by a commercial airline market which is able to operate in a competitive environment. This allows airlines to determine the routes that they operate, and from which airports, based on their assessment of routes’ viability.
The Government recognises that air connectivity between Scotland and the rest of the UK is of real importance, and we are considering the issue of regional connectivity across the UK as we develop our upcoming Aviation Strategy.