Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether her Department is taking steps to ensure that people entering or leaving the UK by air benefit from the protections of Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 by entering into bilateral treaties with third countries.

The Government is committed to protecting the rights of passengers when travelling by air.

Regulation (EC) No. 261/2004 as retained in UK law (Regulation 261/2004), makes provisions on the rights of passengers in the event of flight cancellations, long delays, or denied boarding. It applies to all flights departing from the UK, arriving to the UK on a UK or EU carrier, or arriving in an EU member state on a UK carrier. The rights of passengers travelling on any other flight will depend on the laws of the country it departs from, and where the carrier is registered.