UK Maritime Sector

Mike Kane Excerpts

Thursday 16th September 2021 Westminster Hall

[Mike Kane (Wythenshawe and Sale East) (Lab)]

It is terrific to see you in the Chair, Sir George. I am sure all hon. Members echo that.

My right hon. Friend the Member for North Durham (Mr Jones) is one of the most effective operators in this Parliament at holding the Government to account, but he also always keeps his eyes on the horizon and has vision in what he talks about. The maritime industry does indeed have a very bright future for our country, and I congratulate him on leading the debate.

I was going to make some remarks about the reshuffle, but the hon. Members for Thurrock (Jackie Doyle-Price) and for Glasgow South West (Chris Stephens) have stolen all my lines. I will just say to Government Members, “Hope to God that your phone batteries last the day for you all.”

To be discussing the maritime sector in London International Shipping Week is a great honour. I pay tribute to everyone in the maritime sector, which played such a crucial role in getting this country through the pandemic and will continue to do so in the months ahead. We have had an inspiring and enjoyable debate—the House at its best.

The hon. Member for Waveney (Peter Aldous) always sticks up for the people of Suffolk, for Lowestoft port, for fishing and for the technology to come. I wish his beloved Ipswich Town all the best—I think things will pick up for him this season.

For the right hon. Member for Orkney and Shetland (Mr Carmichael), Orcadians may be crofters who can fish, and Shetland Islanders may be fishermen who can croft, so he has a lot to say, and he says it well. However, I want to make the serious point, in relation to Nautilus, that we do not discuss the maritime sector enough in Parliament. As for the RMT and the Irish Ferries ship, the W. B. Yeats, I remind hon. Members that Yeats wrote a poem called “The Indian to his Love”:

“Here we will moor our lonely ship… how far away the unquiet lands”.

We will make unquiet lands for Irish Ferries while it pays its workers below the minimum wage. All of us in this House should agree on that and highlight it every time, as the RMT does. It is not right not to treat its workers with dignity and respect. The right hon. Gentleman will be happy to know that I have just booked my summer holiday in his village—I let him know so he can go on holiday, too.

The hon. Member for Thurrock is a proud champion of the all-party group and could launch a thousand ships from her constituency alone. The hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon), who is not in his place, talked about Belfast and its maritime heritage, but also its future—zero emissions, ferries, ships, and the fishing industry in his constituency. I will put in a bid for the port of Foyle as well. It is underutilised, and we could see more cruise ships stopping there.

The hon. Member for Totnes (Anthony Mangnall) talked about education and the leaders of the future. We need the agglomeration in our ports, getting people into well-paid jobs that can be equivalent to level 5 without the debt of a degree. He used his experience in brokerage to highlight that really well.

Seafarers and the maritime industry have kept this nation fed, fuelled and supplied, often at great personal cost. I spoke to the industry this week. Mareel at Holyhead crews vessels across the world, and then there are Holyhead Towing crews as well. They have operatives across the planet who have not been able to get home. They have stood by their posts to make sure the British shipping industry works.

Revitalising our maritime sector would unlock tens of thousands of green jobs across the UK. That could be the stimulus to regenerating our often overlooked coastal communities and provide the opportunity to renew the many towns and villages dotted along the coastline. I speak frequently to those in the sector. They tell me how keen they are to make the changes needed to develop, innovate and change for the greener. However, the Government need to fund and support that radical transformation.

My right hon. Friend the Member for North Durham mentioned the £20 million for the competition—that is great, and we welcome it—but that must be a vanguard for what we need to do in future to ensure that we have good strategies to turn what we have got into what we need, to get what we want. That is what we have to do with the agglomeration of our maritime industry around our coasts and our component islands.

Another thing I call on the Government to do is turn the tide on, so to speak—if you will pardon the pun, Sir George—with financial backing for the shipbuilding industry. What all the biggest shipbuilding nations today have in common is either financial support for the industry or Government subsidies. We have heard some fantastic contributions, but why do the Government provide backing to the car industry and not the maritime sector, which had just £3 million committed this year, in one competition? Government must do more to attract investment by backing home shipbuilding credit guarantees and loans.

Decarbonisation and rebalancing of the economy are possible, and UK maritime, with its wealth of talent and expertise, has shown time and again its ability to generate enormous value. Shipping will be key to the journey to net zero by 2050. We cannot get there without decarbonising our shipping. The Government recognise that and have put maritime in their “Ten Point Plan for a Green Industrial Revolution” as an industry difficult to decarbonise.

I am sure the Minister will make much of the clean maritime demonstration programme today, but while the investment is welcome, as I have said, we need more. This could be a fantastic opportunity for our country, as currently there is no clear global leader setting the pace to develop these technologies. If we are prepared to act fast and invest in the UK, we can become a scientific and green technological superpower—the hon. Member for Totnes said a 21st-century superpower—bringing jobs and prosperity to our neglected seaside communities and once again making our maritime industry world leading.

There is no time to lose. We have a moral duty and an environmental obligation to control pollution and reduce emissions. We must make a fair transition to green technology and to automation, but this must also be a just transition, ensuring that our seafarers and maritime professionals can avail themselves of the new opportunities. Government must do more to develop the sector, support the creation of new training and employment opportunities, and incentivise shipowners to commit to providing opportunities for employment for UK seafarers. I will always be an advocate for more investment in our maritime sector, which will enable us to become the vanguard of the green maritime industry.

Draft Merchant Shipping (Prevention of Air Pollution from Ships) (Amendment) Regulations 2021

Mike Kane Excerpts

Wednesday 15th September 2021 General Committees

[Mike Kane (Wythenshawe and Sale East) (Lab)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Davies. To be in Committee today, discussing the maritime sector in London International Shipping Week, is a great honour. In this week in particular, I pay tribute to everyone in the maritime sector, which played such a crucial role in getting this country through the pandemic crisis and which will continue to play a crucial role in the months and years ahead. The Minister and I enjoyed a very pleasurable cruise together today—I hope Hansard records that accurately—on the River Thames with industry leaders, where we got to thank them personally for the effort they have put in to keeping our supply chains in the UK moving.

I welcome the opportunity to discuss air pollution today. We all know that it poses not just an environmental threat, but a severe threat to public health, as the Minister pointed out. In my own constituency, the most vulnerable people in our community, children and older people are dealing with increased levels of bronchitis, asthma, heart problems and cancer caused by excesses of nitrogen dioxide in the air they breathe. It is vital that we work to reduce the volume of those emissions and of sulphur dioxide and it is right that we look to all parts of the transport sector to play a part.

We are obliged by MARPOL to control emissions, and our reputation as a maritime nation could be damaged if we fail in that quest. As we come out of lockdown, the effects of climate change are being seen and felt globally. Last year, my constituency was flooded, and the news channels show us wildfires in Europe and across the globe—nothing could more strongly make the case for a green recovery, rooted in decarbonisation and climate justice.

We know what we need to do, and we must start to do it now. Our maritime sector, which is often overlooked, has a crucial role to play, and with the COP26 UN climate change conference imminent, now is the time for us to look ahead and consider a greener future for the industry.

Do the proposals go far enough? I would argue that, in revitalising the maritime sector, we could unlock tens of thousands of jobs across the UK, with many of them green jobs and, very importantly, concentrated in our neglected coastal communities. I had the great honour of visiting the port of Hull a couple of months ago, and cycled from the train station to meet the chief executive in the port, passing the Siemens wind turbine factory. It was a sight to behold, with tens of thousands of highly paid, unionised jobs decarbonising our economy in the heart of a previously neglected coastal community.

This could be the opportunity to renew the many towns and villages that are dotted along the UK coastline, which are in desperate need of improvements to transport, job opportunities and connectivity, and which would be at the heart of maritime sector growth.

I speak frequently to those in the sector, and they tell me how keen they are to make the changes that are needed—to develop, innovate and change for the greener. However, the Government need to fund and support that radical transformation. In doing so, they would rapidly lower carbon emissions from shipping, and in the process could develop world-leading renewable fuels and reskill our workers for a sustainable future.

It is time for Government action. Decarbonisation and the rebalancing of our economy are possible, and UK maritime, with its wealth of talent and expertise, has shown time and again its ability to generate enormous value. This is a fantastic opportunity for our country, as there is no clear global leader setting the pace to develop zero emission shipping technology, and if Ministers are prepared to act quickly and invest, the UK can become a scientific and green technological superpower, bringing jobs and prosperity to our communities around our coast. However, there is no time to lose.

We have a moral duty and an environmental obligation to control pollution and to reduce emissions of both sulphur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide from ships and from our skies and in our children’s lungs. Controlling emissions will allow the UK to comply with its obligations as a party to MARPOL and to reduce the risk of reputational damage from not meeting our obligations.

The new regulations will also enable UK ship inspectors to enforce the international pollutant limits and standards more effectively, so I am happy to support the statutory instrument and will continue to be an advocate for more investment in our maritime sector to ensure we get there and take our rightful place at the front of the vanguard.

Oral Answers to Questions

Mike Kane Excerpts

Thursday 9th September 2021 Commons Chamber

[Robert Courts]

I can absolutely commit to that. It is vital that we work with all elements of the maritime industry to accelerate the transition to net zero and to take advantage of the very real opportunities for green growth. Both the British Ports Association and the UK Major Ports Group are represented on our clean maritime council, and I and my officials regularly engage with the trade associations and individual ports on environmental issues.

[Mike Kane (Wythenshawe and Sale East) (Lab)]

I agree with the hon. Member for Truro and Falmouth (Cherilyn Mackrory) that fantastic projects are under way across the UK, including in her constituency, to get the maritime sector down to net zero. There is, however, a significant funding gap when it comes to making these developments a reality, and the Government, despite their record, have not done anywhere near enough to address the significant investment shortfall compared with other maritime nations that we compete with. Does the Minister agree that it is imperative that our vital maritime sector gets the support it needs? Will he commit to addressing that and providing the necessary funding to support the research and innovation that is required?

[Robert Courts]

I agree with the hon. Gentleman about the importance of decarbonising the maritime sector, but I cannot agree with him about the Government investment. We have invested £20 million in the clean maritime demonstration competition. That seedcorn funding will help to develop the technology that we will be using. It is the largest technology competition ever run by the Department for Transport. I am very glad that next week we have London International Shipping Week, which is the flagship event of the maritime year. We will be able to see the glories of the UK’s maritime industry next week, and I look forward to seeing the hon. Gentleman there.

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[Robert Courts]

I thank the hon. Member for that question, which I know is something that matters a great deal to her constituents. We are looking to address the problem she raises, and I will be able to give her some further detail on that shortly.

[Mike Kane (Wythenshawe and Sale East) (Lab)]

Eighty-one thousand people working in air transport are currently on furlough, including approximately 2,200 in my constituency, which covers Manchester airport. Even in non-airport seats such as that of the Secretary of State, just short of 300 souls face the axe in less than a month’s time. Furlough is due to end three weeks today, and if the Government continue to restrict the market in some sort of latter-day corn law way, they have to make a choice: either open up the market, or put in a sectoral deal. Which is it going to be?

[Robert Courts]

The hon. Gentleman is right to raise the importance of the air transport industry and the travel industry more generally, not just to his constituents but to all our constituents. That is certainly the case for my constituents, and I am acutely aware of it. The best way to support them all is to do what we in the Department for Transport are hard at work doing, which is to safely reopen international travel. Since we last spoke, on 2 August we expanded quarantine-free travel to passengers from the European Union and the United States. We are working to expand that further, and will continue to do so.

Regional Airports

Mike Kane Excerpts

Wednesday 7th July 2021 Westminster Hall

[Mike Kane (Wythenshawe and Sale East) (Lab)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Ms McVey, as you are my constituency neighbour.

I congratulate the hon. Member for St Austell and Newquay (Steve Double) on securing this timely debate and on his superb chairmanship of the APPG on general aviation. He was followed by the hon. Members for Truro and Falmouth (Cherilyn Mackrory) and for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross (Jamie Stone)—it was almost Land’s End to John O’ Groats, but not quite. They gave strong defences of their airports, including Wick airport in the north, and spoke of the exciting prospect of the first hybrid flight from Newquay to Exeter.

There have been a few common themes. As ever, my right hon. Friend the Member for Hayes and Harlington (John McDonnell) spoke about the need for continuing support, as did the hon. Member for Mansfield (Ben Bradley), who said that there is no sector-specific support. Indeed, those Members will know that 19,000 BA staff are still on furlough. Those section notices have to go out in the next few weeks. We are standing on a cliff edge and something needs to happen.

My hon. Friend the Member for Newcastle upon Tyne North (Catherine McKinnell) spoke eloquently about how uneven the opening-up process of international travel has been. Less than two weeks ago, the Minister got uncharacteristically upset with me when I diverged on policy and said that Labour’s view was to scrap the amber list. We now know that, as The Times reported this morning, the Government will scrap the amber list tomorrow when the Secretary of State makes his announcement, so there we have it.

Following on from the remarks by the hon. Member for Paisley and Renfrewshire North (Gavin Newlands), I am glad that peace has prevailed between our nations. The people’s republic of Greater Manchester and the Scottish nation were almost going to go to war when the First Minister banned us from travelling. Some 2.8 million of us were going to march up the M6 in our City and United shirts, under our Oasis parkas, and stand at the border at Gretna shouting, “Nice one, nice one!” but the First Minister has backed down. That decision alone has cost businesses in my constituency tens of thousands of pounds. I hope that the Scottish Government will now think about adequately compensating business for that, but peace now reigns in our time.

I have listened intently to the debate, and to unions, airports, operators and representatives of the aviation industry. What is clear is that without a genuine sectoral deal, the sector and our regional airports will be in peril. Look back at all that the regional airports have had to contend with over the last few years: the collapse of airlines such as Flybe and Monarch, and of the operator Thomas Cook, which are hugely significant in our part of the world in Manchester, as well as for regional connectivity.

Those low-cost carriers opened up areas such as Southampton, Blackpool, Newquay and Birmingham for business and leisure travellers, and they opened up the rest of the world to the people who live there. Welcoming tourists to those areas boosted the economy, hotels, restaurants and taxi drivers. My hometown is currently hosting the wonderful Manchester international festival. Without Humberside airport, would we have seen such a fantastic event at Hull city of culture? Airports are vital for regional economies.

It is not merely culture and tourism that are affected. I understand only too well the value, economically or otherwise, of representing an airport community. I am sure that colleagues who have spoken to represent their constituencies know how important those communities are when it comes to connectivity, particularly the hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon). I must ask him: do airlines arrange their schedules around his interventions in debates? I really wish to know the answer to that question.

Although the Government repeatedly refer to the package of support that aviation has had, there are some specific industry concerns that do not seem to be recognised at all. The covid pandemic has hit this country and its people hard. We have one of the worst death tolls in the world, and we cannot allow the death of the aviation sector and the closure of regional airports to exacerbate the devastation. The often-talked-about £7 billion package of support, which the Minister will mention in his response, is in the form of loans to the industry—it is debt to the industry. As we move into our lost second summer, the ability to service those debts while being unable to operate is striking fear throughout the industry, and there is the looming spectre of further job losses.

We must consider broader sector-specific support. It is not just about airlines and airports; it is about a whole range of other businesses. My colleagues and I have worked with stakeholders to reach a position that protects jobs, the wider supply chain and—crucially, as we head towards 2050—the environment. The sectoral deal that we suggest is based on six conditions. It will save jobs, tackle climate change and ensure that companies benefiting from the sector support rebase their tax affairs in the UK, which is the patriotic thing to do.

We support global Britain, but we are falling behind the rest of the world. If the Government are serious about rebalancing our economy, they must provide a sector-specific deal. The fund was announced last March, but here we are in July and there is no meaningful restart for aviation. If the Government are to provide confidence for travellers and protect these vital hubs, they have to give us a deal.

My last point—I am sure we are all in agreement—is that we absolutely must rebuild the sector, get businesses going again and get people flying again. As far as possible, we must make this a green recovery. There is no easy way to mitigate the environmental impact of aviation, but whether the green recovery is achieved by reducing fuel consumption, by introducing smarter flight operations and new aircraft engine technology, by modernising the airspace, on which I hope to work with the Minister, or by using sustainable aviation fuels, we must make the industry cleaner and greener. What better footnote to the terrible impact that we have all felt from the coronavirus pandemic than to have our regional airports thriving, with green jobs alongside the other jobs that we previously mentioned? Our regions are crying out for new types of well-paid, highly skilled employment. Let us use this opportunity to save our regional airports and create a greener, sustainable recovery in every region of this nation.

Draft Contracting Out (Functions in Relation to Space) Order 2021 Draft Space Industry Regulations 2021 Draft Space Industry (Appeals) Regulations 2021 Draft Spaceflight Activities (Investigation of Spaceflight Accidents) Regulations 2021

Mike Kane Excerpts

Monday 28th June 2021 General Committees

[Mike Kane (Wythenshawe and Sale East) (Lab)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Robertson.

When I won my tightly fought by-election in February 2014, little did I think that I would be coming to Parliament to speak about space exploration—it was not in my stump speech—but it is a great honour to do so as shadow aviation Minister. I should not start a speech with a split infinitive, but this gives the United Kingdom a chance to boldly go into the future with exciting and innovative technology.

Labour welcomes the process of strengthening the Outer Space Act 1986, which was previously deemed to be not rigorous enough to enable the licensing of launches from within the UK. The enhanced regulatory regime under the 2018 Act and the subsequent 2021 space regulations will reduce risk to businesses applying for licences and assure them of consistently fair treatment during the licensing process. Will the Minister confirm that the licensing arrangements are equal to those in countries with similar space industries? She touched on that point in her speech, but it would be great to get a little more detail.

Monitoring the earth from space is crucial as we seek to understand and tackle climate change. The expansion of the UK’s space industry and its capacity will assist with that. I was pleased to read in guidance issued by the Department for Transport last week that the Government would merely make minor clarifications to guidance on the environmental objectives of air quality, noise, the marine environment and climate change. Cornwall and Shetland are special areas, and we want them to be protected.

The draft measures will reassure the wider general public that due diligence has been applied to the programme and those who seek to operate in space. The contracting out of regulatory functions to the CAA is positive, as it has gained knowledge, skills and experience from its current remit, and it can expand that remit and its capability to spaceflight. Will the Minister confirm that additional funding will be available to the CAA to undertake that governance?

The granting of licences will open up new competitive markets, and reduce costs and logistical difficulties for academics and the wider scientific community. It will provide new opportunities for exploration, experimentation and discovery that will stimulate and accelerate future spaceflight and all allied technologies that will make this country a world leader in the field. Can the Minister assure us that the high-quality jobs created by the programme, and the resultant economic prosperity, will be shared evenly across the UK? For example, will the Government ensure that British steel is used in the development of the UK’s space industry? What steps are being taken to ensure that the supply chains that will be necessary for the expansion of the UK space industry address regional inequality? Finally, what steps is the Minister taking to ensure that new, high-quality, highly paid and highly skilled jobs will go to the regions?

Oral Answers to Questions

Mike Kane Excerpts

Thursday 24th June 2021 Commons Chamber

[Rachel Maclean]

I absolutely commend my hon. Friend for being a continued champion for Exeter airport in his constituency, which provides jobs and employment for many of his constituents. He will know that the airport and ground operations support scheme provides eligible commercial airports with support towards their fixed costs. In the March Budget, the Chancellor announced a six-month renewal of that scheme from April. Initial payments will be made towards the end of the summer.

My hon. Friend mentions aviation tax reform. The Treasury is currently reviewing responses and will update on timing in due course.

[Mike Kane (Wythenshawe and Sale East) (Lab)]

To follow on from the question asked by the hon. Member for East Devon (Simon Jupp), regional airports play a critical role in connecting our regions and our Union. This month, Stobart Air collapsed, and easyJet is to close its bases at Newcastle International, London Stansted and London Southend airports; Teesside and Newquay have previously shut their doors. Without a sector-specific deal, our regional airports, the connectivity that they provide and the jobs and communities that they support are at risk. What assessment has the Department made of the long-term viability of this critical infrastructure to our nation?

[Rachel Maclean]

As the hon. Gentleman will know, we fully recognise and support the importance of the aviation industry to our country. That is why this Government have stood behind the sector and provided up to £7 billion, in the round, of support for jobs through the furlough scheme and support for airports and the airline industry. It is vital that we get the travel industry back on its feet, which is why we are taking a public health approach to restarting travel. The Transport Secretary will say more on that this evening.

Covid-19: Support for Aviation, Tourism and Travel Industries

Mike Kane Excerpts

Thursday 24th June 2021 Westminster Hall

[Mike Kane (Wythenshawe and Sale East) (Lab)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Dr Huq. To the hon. Member for Crawley (Henry Smith), with whom I have been a fellow traveller for a number of years on the matters of aviation and the Chagos islanders, I say well done for securing the debate.

The hon. Member for Paisley and Renfrewshire North (Gavin Newlands) and I have just had a private discussion about the people of Scotland and Greater Manchester giving peace a chance. The First Minister should perhaps have picked up the phone to Mayor Andy Burnham before she made a decision to ban people from Bolton, which has a smaller covid outbreak than Dundee. I think we can do better than that. We are not going to burn the First Minister in effigy—that betrays human dignity—but we are thinking of donning the woad and marching north as a conurbation.

It was heartening to see the whole industry come together to lobby. As has been mentioned, yesterday on College Green, hundreds spoke up for travel, airlines, airports and travel agents. Unions, cabin crew, and colleagues from all parties united to highlight the dire situation of the UK’s aviation, travel and tourism industries. The hon. Member for Crawley robbed from my speech when he spoke in his articulate way about the worth of those industries not just to our constituencies but, as the hon. Member for Warrington South (Andy Carter) pointed out, to the wider economies around airports in particular.

That is why I really want to push the Government on what the hon. Member for Paisley and Renfrewshire North said about the sector-specific deal. The Chancellor promised way back at the beginning of the pandemic that he would deliver a sector-specific package for the aviation industry, and we are still waiting. The Under-Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, the hon. Member for Mid Worcestershire (Nigel Huddleston) assured the House that a tourism recovery plan was on the way and would be announced by the end of spring. Well, solstice was on Monday, and according to my rusty Latin, it means “when the sun stands still”. The only things standing still at the moment are our travel, tourism and aviation industries.

There has been much debate about the traffic light system, which I know has been challenged by the Chair of the Select Committee, the hon. Member for Bexhill and Battle (Huw Merriman). I should point out that there have been great speeches from Members from both sides of the Chamber, and I wish I could name them all in the time I have available. As the hon. Gentleman pointed out, there is a real human cost. We in this House have lost friends. I have lost Lord Jimmy Gordon of Strathblane, who was a mate of mine. I lost an aunt to covid the other week. A councillor where I live has just come out of hospital after being in ICU. I have not seen my friends and family in the west of Ireland for nearly two years. There is a real human cost to this disease, and the hon. Gentleman was right to mention it.

On the traffic light system, the Government have to get going so that we capitalise on the immunisation dividend that hon. Members have mentioned, but maybe that is a discussion for another day. We are talking about getting confidence back in our industry, not lurching from false start to false start. Her Majesty’s official Opposition are thinking of setting up a taskforce to look at the number of taskforces that the Department for Transport has set up in the past 12 months that have been ineffectual.

Nobody is arguing in favour of unrestricted travel, but given the success and advanced state of our vaccination programme, thanks to the wonderful NHS, it may now be time for the Government to follow their own recommendations, which were announced in the global travel taskforce. As was pointed out by my right hon. Friend the Member for Exeter (Mr Bradshaw), how can we as a nation be more restricted now than we were 12 months ago when we did not have a vaccine? The rationale and data must be published, and the methodology shared of how the decisions are made to place a country on the red, amber or green list.

I say directly to the Minister that the Manchester Airports Group should not be having to launch legal challenges against the Government in order to get transparency on the traffic light system. We will listen at what the Government say tonight, but we will see in a couple of weeks what the courts say.

We have a pandemic. We are not attacking the Government, but we are highlighting their inadequacies. This stop-start nature is ruining the confidence of this industry. As we approach the summer, the Prime Minister has been saying it is not going to be a full season. That immediately knocks millions more pounds off these important industries.

We have said time and again that we support the furlough scheme. I agree with Members who have said that we will highlight unscrupulous employers who have attacked workers’ pay and conditions during this time. That is not British and it is unpatriotic every time, and we will call it out.

We have consistently called for a sectoral deal. As is illustrated in this debate, politicians are urging the Government to intervene. Ministers have to intervene. The dither and delay cannot go on. We have to either get a summer season or introduce a package. The Government’s modus operandi is to put the situation back on the industry, whether it be travel agents or the cruise industry, which takes 2 million passengers a year from UK shores and adds billions to our economy, or whether it is passengers in amber list countries, making it up as they go along—“It is your responsibility for you to be safe.” The Government need to tell us and give confidence and certainty to the industry. That is what it is crying out for.

The delay in opening up on 21 June was a hammer blow to the industry and a potential final blow to many who are struggling. The message that we should go with from here today is that we are very proud of our world-class aviation industry, which is the third biggest on the planet—one that we want to be greener, cleaner and more efficient—with world-leading technologies and well-unionised jobs across the sector. Millions are employed by it. We have a world-class cruise industry that takes people across the planet and around our shores. We have a world-class travel industry, second to none. This is what is going to regenerate our economy, give pride back to our nation and get the country back on its feet. We need certainty. We do not need any more dither and delay.

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[Robert Courts]

The shadow Defence Secretary; I am grateful to him for correcting me. That is the confused position of Labour: simultaneously calling for the travel sector to be opened up while at the same time arguing to scrap the amber list, which would damage the sector. I hope Labour Members will forgive me for saying that they are not in any position to give lessons to the Government about how to manage this when their party’s position is changing by the day.

[Mike Kane]

My right hon. Friend the Member for Exeter (Mr Bradshaw) is a Back Bencher; I am the Front Bencher.

[Robert Courts]

The right hon. Member for Exeter gave a reported comment from someone. Provided that is the case, Labour’s position is changing by the day.

In any event, the Joint Biosecurity Centre produces risk assessments of countries and territories for the traffic light system, so it is data-driven. Sometimes difficult decisions have to be made, which are guided by the information given by the JBC and then made by Ministers. A summary of that is published on the website, alongside the wider public health factors that we have to take into account.

The right hon. Member for Exeter made a powerful speech. I entirely share his passion for international travel and I have the greatest respect for him. I know he will understand that, at a time like this, the Government have to take difficult decisions. We are in the early stages of a return to international travel, and as the data allow, we will look to open up international travel as it is safe to do so, but it must be safe, it must be sustainable and it must be robust. We have to accept that travel may not be quite the same this year. I say that because it is so important that we do not throw away the hard-won steps we have taken.

Thanks to the sacrifices of the British people, we have been able to get to the stage that we are at now. I accept that the approach is cautious, because it is meant to be robust. These have been difficult times, but none of us wants to go backwards, for the reason that the hon. Member for Wythenshawe and Sale East said at the beginning of his speech, when he reminded us of the cost of covid.

Financial Assistance to Industry

Mike Kane Excerpts

Monday 24th May 2021 General Committees

[Mike Kane (Wythenshawe and Sale East) (Lab)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship today, Mr Robertson. I congratulate you on your football team, Bolton Wanders, gaining promotion to league one. The Trotters have an astonishing history of football in the north-west. As a Manchester City fan, having watched them lift the premier league title yesterday and having worked for the club in the 1990s on a zero-hours contract—the lowest paid, highest status job I ever had; my job now is well paid, but I leave hon. Members to decide the status of the work we do—I can say that there is hope for all clubs in the future. That is why the proposed superleague was such a bad idea.

I wholeheartedly concur with the Minister’s comments about Belarus. The news yesterday of a Ryanair flight being diverted from its course to land in Minsk by the Belarusian Government is very troubling. We rely on free and open skies for our aviation markets to work. I join the Minister in condemning this act and support the strong response that the British Government have just announced—suspending Belavia’s licence to operate and avoiding Belarusian airspace. It is the best we can do in a limited period, and I am sure there is more we and the international community can do to stop what Ryanair called “state-sponsored hijacking” in the sky.

I welcome the extension of the AGOSS for a further six months. The scheme provided up to £8 million in rates relief to airports and ground operators last year, and it will offer £4 million in the first half of this year. While the scheme is indeed welcome, financial support for the aviation sector is something Labour has been demanding for over a year. The Minister laid out certain measures the Government have taken, but did not provide the context of what has been happening. The money provided under the motion will not cover even the rates bill for our largest airports. Manchester Airport, which is in my constituency, is losing tens of millions of pounds every month, even with the bare minimum of operating costs and while running a skeleton staff. The £4 million relief this year barely touches the sides.

Realistically, with our domestic vaccination programme extending into the autumn and with very few overseas destinations on the green list, aviation will be grounded for much of the rest of the year. It is great to see confidence coming back in the past few weeks, particularly about Portugal, but it remains a worrying time for the industry. Without further financial support, the chances of failures in the sector are becoming very real. The UK has the third largest aviation sector in the world, but we are now at risk of falling behind other countries, which are supporting their aviation sectors fully. For example, France has bailed out Air France-KLM, and the US has offered tens of billions of dollars to its sector.

The UK Government have halted all covid-related appeals of business rates and said they will introduce a new rates relief fund to provide support for businesses that need it, but they have yet to set out any details of how the new fund will work. Retrospectively changing tax laws has created huge financial uncertainty. The Government need to confirm the terms of their rates relief fund as soon as possible. I know the Minister shares my passion for our aviation industry. I hope he will work with colleagues in government and ensure that the sector gets the vital support it needs, so that it gets back in the air as soon as possible.

Finally, let me take this opportunity to say that, without our staff, parliamentarians are nothing. I lost a member of staff, who retired at the age of 67, a matter of weeks ago, and now, after four years with me, my parliamentary assistant Steve Kay, who writes these fantastic speeches to hold the Government to account, is off for a bigger and better job in the private sector. I wanted to put on the record my thanks to him for all his hard work to keep Government and Opposition functioning, and particularly to keep the Government on their toes.

Oral Answers to Questions

Mike Kane Excerpts

Thursday 29th April 2021 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

We now come to shadow Minister Mike Kane.

[Mike Kane (Wythenshawe and Sale East) (Lab)]

My hon. Friend the Member for Ealing, Southall (Mr Sharma) is bang on the money today. Border Force is operating an onerous, manual, assurance check on inbound passengers’ covid compliance despite there being very low incidence of non-compliance and robust pre-departure checks by carriers, causing huge queues in our immigration halls. The Secretary of State likes his taskforces. Where is the one to alleviate these bottlenecks before our skies reopen on 17 May?

Air Traffic Management and Unmanned Aircraft Bill [Lords]

Mike Kane Excerpts

Report stage & 3rd reading
Monday 22nd March 2021 Commons Chamber

It would be interesting if the Minister addressed the issue in his winding-up speech. Will he look—in future, if not in the Bill—at the cost of the externalities of airspace changes? Does he believe that airports on land owned by the public sector have an additional responsibility to take wider account of their social responsibilities? If so, will he have a word with his colleagues in the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, who just three or four months ago gave a bail-out to Luton Borough Council that was not available to Central Bedfordshire Council or Bedford Borough Council because they were no longer getting rent money from the airport? Will he request that the Ministry says that if the council wants to continue to benefit from that loan, it must start to share the benefits of its profits from the airport? That would be a way of making sure that those externalities are covered.

[Mike Kane (Wythenshawe and Sale East) (Lab)]

I thank all hon. Members who have spoken or will speak on Report today, those who spoke on Second Reading or in Committee, as well as Members in the other place, for their work on the Bill. I remain certain of the requirement for this legislation. The Minister and I have a shared ambition for airspace modernisation in the United Kingdom. As I have said before, the country has been managing its airspace with analogue technology from the previous century, with piecemeal updates as demand has grown—an analogue system in a digital age. The Bill is vital to hasten and co-ordinate an ambitious airspace change programme fit for the 21st century.

Part 2, which involves the regulation of air traffic control services, is very welcome. I am pleased that the Bill is addressing regulation now; all hon. Members present agree that the changes will enable the Civil Aviation Authority to maintain the UK’s excellent flying safety record and continue to be a world-class leader in aviation safety. The Minister and I have discussed airport slots ad nauseam, including on Second Reading and in Committee. Labour has supported the Government on recent statutory instruments to extend the temporary waiver on slot regulations owing to the covid-19 pandemic. I am content that clause 12 will provide the Government with the tools to tackle airport slot allocation issues that arise from the pandemic.

Part 3, which provides further police powers over the use of unmanned aircraft, is long overdue; I am grateful that tonight we are closer to bringing those powers into effect. As technology has moved on, drones have become more and more common, and it was only a matter of time before an incident such as the one at Gatwick airport in 2018 that disrupted air traffic. I am grateful to the Minister for addressing the concerns raised in Committee and am content to support this part of the Bill today.

It would, however, be remiss to speak on this Bill tonight and not mention the current situation in which the aviation sector finds itself. The covid-19 pandemic has devastated the industry. The UK was previously the third largest aviation market in the world, but now we are not so sure. The Government, through neglect and their belief that the markets would be able to support this huge section of our national economy, have hamstrung the entire sector.

Twelve months ago we were led to believe that the Treasury would be offering a bespoke support package for airlines, aerospace, airports and ground-handlers and other support services; a year later no specific aviation deal has emerged. It is vital that when the global travel taskforce reports to the Prime Minister on 12 April the Department for Transport and colleagues across Government roll out a robust and comprehensive plan to enable aviation to lift off into the skies again. This summer will be make or break for the sector, and the ambition presented by this Bill will be for nothing if we cannot maintain our advantage on the world stage with one of our leading industries after the pandemic draws to a close.

[Mr Deputy Speaker (Mr Nigel Evans)]

I hope you noticed that I was very good to you there, Mr Kane, by not interrupting you even though you went a bit wider than you should have.

--- Later in debate ---

[Mike Kane]

I am proud to have Manchester airport in my constituency, as you well know, Mr Deputy Speaker; I am proud to be shadow aviation spokesman; and I am proud of this country’s world-class aviation sector, which is the third largest on the planet. We want to protect the sector, grow it and make it better. We want to protect and grow the interlinked aerospace sector, in which the UK has world-leading engine and aircraft manufacturers. Rolls met Royce in the Midland hotel in Manchester—that is where it came from. We want to facilitate the study of science, technology, engineering and maths subjects for all our young people who are looking at careers in this highly skilled, highly paid sector. We want to get past this pandemic, and we will keep our eyes on the horizon. This legislation helps us to do that.

I have already discussed, today and previously, the passion that the Minister and I share for airspace modernisation, and what it brings: increased capacity in our skies. The noise and carbon reduction that it will bring will make aviation in our country better. For the benefit of Members who missed the procedures in the other place, and have not got around to watching the Committee stage in this place, I will repeat my noble Friend Lord Rosser’s point that the provision for drone technology has not been updated since the Aviation and Maritime Security Act 1990. He pointed out that that is closer to Yuri Gagarin’s first trip into space than it is to today; I will not regale the Minister again with Yuri Gagarin’s trip to Manchester in 1961, as I did in Committee.

Mr Deputy Speaker, you admonished me for going off-piste a few moments ago by talking about the Government’s lack of an aviation-specific deal. I was once given sage advice by the former Member for Buckingham and the previous Speaker of the House of Commons about never allowing bureaucracy a chance to say “no” to us in this place, so on that basis, I thank my caseworker Al Franco, who retires on Wednesday after a lifetime of service to the people of Manchester and Salford. He has worked for the late, great Paul Goggins and me over the past 10 years. Al has been a remarkable support to me, my team, and the communities of Wythenshawe and Sale East. I take this opportunity to thank him, and to wish him a long, happy retirement.

It has been a pleasure to work on this Bill, and I thank all those who the Minister has mentioned who have worked on it. I also thank the Minister for his courtesies during the passage of this Bill, and I will be pleased to see it gain Royal Assent.