HS2: Revised Timetable and Budget

Martin Docherty-Hughes Excerpts

Tuesday 14th March 2023 Commons Chamber

[Huw Merriman]

I recognise the frustrations that delays to large infrastructure projects can cause. HS2 phase 2b, for example, is being looked at by a House of Commons Bill Committee; there will then be a House of Lords Bill Committee. There is also the ability to petition. For phase 1, there are many more miles of viaduct and tunnelling than when the programme was first envisaged. That is because of democracy, because of this place and because of the need to mitigate issues for constituents. Although I recognise the frustrations about the delivery of infrastructure projects, I say to my hon. Friend that that is a part of the democratic process, the planning process and the legal process that we have to abide by.

[Martin Docherty-Hughes (West Dunbartonshire) (SNP)]

As you well know, Mr Speaker, the Ottoman Sultan Abdülhamid II appreciated the importance of railways in nation building and approved the building of the Hejaz railway to connect Istanbul with the holy cities of Mecca and Medina, despite the perilous state of his empire at the time. In failing to deliver on even the most basic vision for HS2, the Government have revealed a preference for leaving Scotland and other parts of their realms poorly connected to the centre. How does the Minister expect my constituents in West Dunbartonshire to feel affinity to a British state that cannot even build a railway in its direction?

[Huw Merriman]

I reiterate the benefits of HS2 with regard to the United Kingdom as a whole. The hon. Gentleman will be interested in the options for the Golborne link; we will be writing back to the Transport Committee about those options. That, of course, will assist with our long-term vision to take HS2 trains all the way through the spine of the country, including to Scotland.

Night Flights: Impact on Communities

Martin Docherty-Hughes Excerpts

Tuesday 8th November 2022 Commons Chamber

[Sarah Olney]

That point is powerfully made. The Government set the current night flight regime at Heathrow airport, but the restrictions are simply not stringent enough and the true number of night flights is significantly higher than the quota allows. An average of 16 flights per night are permitted to land at Heathrow each year between the hours of 11.30 pm and 6 am, but flights may receive special dispensation not to be counted towards the overall quota if they are delayed due to specific reasons such as weather conditions or air traffic control disruption.

From July to September this year, 231 flights were granted dispensation. That is between two and three additional flights per night on average. In total, 475 unscheduled night flights arrived at or departed from Heathrow airport due to extreme delays and disruption. At times, my constituents would suffer almost continuous noise from aircraft overhead. That is partly due to the Government’s complete lack of long-term planning, which saw airports engulfed in chaos and flight schedules thrown into the air. However, it also proves that the current restrictions are insufficient to limit the impact on residents when disturbances to flight patterns occur.

[Martin Docherty-Hughes (West Dunbartonshire) (SNP)]

The eastern fringe of my constituency, my home town, is directly under the flightpath of Glasgow airport. A local group in my constituency, the Whitecrook Aircraft Noise Association, has been fighting for years for local residents affected by noise to be given the necessary support to alleviate its effects. When the hon. Lady asks her questions of the Minister, one of the most important and basic questions is what the Government are going to do to stop night-time flights across our constituencies.

[Sarah Olney]

Indeed, that is the pertinent question: what are the Government going to do?

--- Later in debate ---

[Mr Holden]

I fully take on board the hon. Lady’s points and would recommend that she takes up the opportunity to meet with Heathrow officials, who have offered to meet her, because they will be able to explain in full detail. If she wants to write to me after that meeting, I will obviously write back with as many details as I have in the Department.

We remain committed to revising our night flight dispensation guidance—perhaps the hon. Lady can also write to me about that after those meetings. This will be done following a review of the number of night flight dispensations made this summer, because it was higher. I would like to reassure the hon. Lady that all night flight dispensations granted by airport managers are subject to monitoring by the Department for Transport.

To respond to the issues the hon. Lady raised about night flights, there is a study currently under way. Exposure to aviation noise at night can impact on physical and mental wellbeing, as well as sleep disturbance. To better understand this, the Department has commissioned the aviation night noise effects study to examine the relationship between aviation noise and sleep disturbance and annoyance, and how this varies by different times of the night. The study is a collaboration between St George’s University of London, NatCen Social Research, Noise Consultants Ltd and the University of Pennsylvania. It is the first study of aviation noise effects on sleep disturbance in the UK for 30 years. The first stage of ANNE will involve a cross-section of 4,000 people who live near eight of the major UK airports, to assess the association between aircraft noise exposure at night and subjective assessments of sleep quality and annoyance.

[Martin Docherty-Hughes]

rose—

[Mr Holden]

I am very sorry, I am going to have to keep going. The second stage of the study—[Interruption.] The hon. Gentleman can write to me, as he asks from a sedentary position.

The second stage of the study will involve an observational study of individuals recruited from the survey to assess the association between aircraft noise exposure and objective sleep quality. This will involve psychological assessments of sleep disturbance and sound level measurements in participants’ bedrooms. That evidence will be used to inform future policies for night flight aviation noise exposure, and assist with the management and mitigation of health impacts on local communities, as part of a wider assessment of the costs and benefits of night flying.

In conclusion, the Government recognise that noise from aircraft taking off and landing at night is often regarded by communities as the most disturbing form of airport operations. At the same time, we live in a fully interconnected and global world, and the aviation sector has material value to the UK economy. Night flights are an important contributor to that. The Government continue to strive to find the correct balance between the negative impacts of aviation and the positive economic benefits that night flights bring to the British economy, as can be seen from the fact that we are conducting this important study. The findings of the aviation night noise effects study and the consultation on the future night flight regime will be the next steps on that important journey. I hope that, going forward, that survey will also play into our consultation on night flights.

Question put and agreed to.

Draft Airports Slot Allocation (Alleviation of Usage Requirements) (No. 2) Regulations 2021

Martin Docherty-Hughes Excerpts

Tuesday 19th October 2021 General Committees

[Robert Courts]

Thank you, Mr Davies. If I may, I will make some progress and return to the hon. Gentleman’s point in a moment.

Owing to the continued uncertainty and low passenger demand forecasts, we set out a package of measures on 19 July to alleviate slot usage requirements for the winter 2021 season, which runs from 31 October 2021 to 26 March 2022. That package was developed following consultation with the aviation industry and careful consideration of responses. It is fair to say that there were a range of views, from calls for a full waiver to support for no alleviation.

The draft instrument applies to England, Scotland and Wales. It is a devolved matter for Northern Ireland and does not therefore apply to it.

In the draft instrument, we have set out a package of alleviation measures that are designed to work together. They include changing the minimum usage ratio to 50:50, meaning that airlines are required to sue their slots at least 50% of the time to retain the right to operate those same slots in the following year. The reintroduction of a utilisation rate should encourage efficient slot use while also supporting sector recovery. There is a utilisation rate rather than a full waiver that we have seen in the past.

The draft regulations would also allow airlines that hand back a full series of slots to the slot co-ordinator before the start of the season to retain the right to operate that series of slots the following year. That will provide an opportunity for other airlines, including new entrants, to apply for and operate those slots on a temporary or ad hoc basis. The measure will apply to traded and leased slots, but not to newly allocated slots. That will prevent carriers from acquiring slots with no intention of using them. However, airlines that have announced that they have permanently ceased or will permanently cease operations at an airport before the start of the winter 2022 season will not benefit from the regulations in winter 2022.

The draft regulations expand the reasons that airlines may use to justify not using slots to include covid-19 related restrictions. That provides a guard against the risk of unforeseen covid-19 related measures or restrictions being imposed during the season. It will apply where unforeseen covid-19 related measures, including flight bans, quarantine or self-isolation requirements are applied at either end of a route and have a severe impact on demand for the route or the viability of it. That will apply where restrictions could not reasonably have been foreseen in time to hand back the full slot series. There will be a three-week recovery period during which the provisions, sometimes known as force majeure, may still apply following the end of the covid restrictions. That gives airports and airlines time to respond to any unforeseen restrictions. The measures will cover the winter 2021 scheduling period, from 31 October 2021 to 26 March 2022.

We are currently considering alleviation for summer 2022 and we plan to consult with industry and interested Members to inform our policy later this year.

The instrument provides the necessary relief for the aviation sector for the winter 2021 scheduling period. Through this package of measures we have aimed to strike a balance between supporting the financial health of the sector while encouraging recovery.

[Martin Docherty-Hughes (West Dunbartonshire) (SNP)]

The Minister said that Northern Ireland is excluded from the measure due to devolution. Can he expand on why it is good for them and not good for the rest of us?

[Robert Courts]

The reason is that aerodromes are a devolved matter in relation to Northern Ireland. There are also no co-ordinated slot airports in Northern Ireland, so the Northern Ireland Executive have agreed that it was not necessary for the powers of the 2021 Act to extend to, or apply in relation to, Northern Ireland.

I am conscious that I promised to respond to the query from the hon. Member for Blackley and Broughton.

Thomas Cook

Martin Docherty-Hughes Excerpts

Wednesday 25th September 2019 Commons Chamber

[Grant Shapps]

It is important not to worry unnecessarily worry people who are already in a very distressing situation. This will be done well before 31 October, given that we are not even into October yet and this operation is going to run for another 12 days, plus time to bring people home. The two issues are not connected. I absolutely want to reassure anyone working for Thomas Cook, “We absolutely are with you.”

[Martin Docherty-Hughes (West Dunbartonshire) (SNP)]

The Secretary of State has sought to assure my constituents in the Vale of Leven and in Clydebank, and in offices across the UK, that their pensions are fine and that employment opportunities are available for the future. Nevertheless, can he take a step forward and also assure them that if they need to claim universal credit they will not need to wait six weeks for it; and more specifically, for those abroad who are UK nationals, that Thomas Cook has paid their national insurance contributions, allowing them to claim social security when they return home?

[Grant Shapps]

As I said, the pension set-up is very clearly described through the usual channels. It depends on whether somebody is retired, what stage they are at and so on. With regard to universal credit, if people go in for it now, they can get an advance payment on it.

Drones: Consultation Response

Martin Docherty-Hughes Excerpts

Monday 7th January 2019 Commons Chamber

[Chris Grayling]

I am happy to do that to some degree, but the reality is that the response by the Ministry of Defence included some highly sensitive, confidential, secure equipment. That equipment is there to be deployed at other airports at short notice, should the need arise. I give the hon. Lady an undertaking that we are talking to all those airports about what additional measures they can put in place and are already putting in place to ensure that this cannot happen again. Until now, all the experience of drone incidents around the world has been of irresponsible drone usage. This is the first time that a drone has been deliberately used in a very clever way over a sustained period of time to disrupt an airport. Airports now need to ensure that they are ready to make sure that that cannot happen again.

[Martin Docherty-Hughes (West Dunbartonshire) (SNP)]

I hope that it comes as no surprise to the Secretary of State that I am now the fourth member of the Defence Committee to rise. It comes as no surprise to the four members of that Select Committee present in this Chamber that this situation has arisen and that nothing was planned to deal with the consequences other than calling the Ministry of Defence, whose Ministers, I am disappointed to say, are not also on the Front Bench.

As a constituency MP, like many others here with airports within distance of their constituencies, I wonder whether the Secretary of State can give some assurances to my constituents, specifically in Whitecrook in the burgh of Clydebank. Does the Secretary of State recognise that disruptive technology is not new?

With all due respect to my hon. Friends and colleagues who were disrupted during the travel episode, this is also not just about the traveller. It is about the person living on the ground, if a tragic event should bring down a liner on top of a community represented by any of us. Fundamentally, this is not just about airports or aeroplanes. What should happen, as the Chair of the Select Committee himself asked, if someone should use a drone to attack a piece of infrastructure, whether it be an oil refinery or rig, or a large drone hits the front of a high-speed intercity train? The Secretary of State must recognise the consequences of this situation and the impact on people’s lives if nothing is done about it.

[Chris Grayling]

Of course. Many people around the world are trying to find the perfect anti-drone solutions but, as Gatwick airport discovered, the reality is that those technologies are still embryonic. We now have in place an assembly of systems that will enable us to deal with an incident such as this again, but there is a lot of work to be done and a lot of work is being done.

Draft Aviation Safety (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019

Martin Docherty-Hughes Excerpts

Wednesday 19th December 2018 General Committees

[Martin Docherty-Hughes (West Dunbartonshire) (SNP)]

I wish a merry Christmas to you, Mr Evans, and to everyone else in the room. Briefly, and on top of what the hon. Member for Kingston upon Hull East said, the Scottish National party will not oppose the draft regulations. Anyone who opposes a move to maintain safety standards after no deal frankly undervalues their importance. While I might not agree with no deal, I think we all agree on the criticality of safety. Given that we are discussing the draft regulations on the day of the commemoration of Lockerbie, it is important that we recognise the many issues that the aviation industry faces.

Will the Minister give some clear assurances about how he will lock in the high standards that we already expect in civil aviation certification if no deal takes places? As we have heard, the CAA has been a major driver of those safety standards across the whole European Union, which we are still a member at the moment. Articles 60 and 61 of the UK-EU political declaration relate to aviation, with article 60 covering market access, investment and so on. Article 61 says:

“The Parties should make further arrangements to enable cooperation”.

Article 24, on regulatory aspects, states that the parties

“will also explore the possibility of cooperation of United Kingdom authorities with Union agencies such as the European Medicines Agency (EMA), the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA), and the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA).”

Specifically, as the CAA assumes these new rules and regulations outwith the European Union, if that is what is to progress, will the Minister give any consideration to strengthening its independence as a certifier of aviation safety, given that it is funded by the industry itself?