Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the effect of the amendments to the May 2018 guidance in the WebTAG aviation module to include the benefits to non-UK residents who are international to international transfer passengers passing through UK airports in the economic benefits of (a) Heathrow Airport Limited north west runway, the preferred scheme in the Airports National Policy Statement and (b) the Gatwick Airport non-preferred scheme.

The case for the Heathrow Northwest Runway scheme does not rely on the monetised benefits accruing to international transfer (I-to-I) passengers. In the Government’s reports, benefits are clearly separated into those accruing to UK, non-UK and I-to-I passengers for all three schemes. This shows that the Northwest Runway scheme delivers greater benefits to UK residents soonest – it is not overtaken until the 2060s – and it does so without including the full economic benefits expected from this scheme. By maintaining the UK’s hub status through attracting I-to-Is, the Northwest Runway scheme delivers the best outcome for the UK’s connectivity, which in turn should deliver the biggest boost for the UK’s economy by facilitating more freight, trade and productivity growth.

In producing its analysis the Government has followed appraisal guidance wherever appropriate in line with standard advice that the guidance should be used proportionately and not prescriptively. While the Government recognises the aim to separate impacts according to whether they accrue to UK or to non-UK residents, this is not always possible. In the case of aviation, it is particularly difficult to disaggregate costs by residency. The Government’s assessment therefore presents all effects to all actors, regardless of residency, to allow a consistent comparison between costs and benefits. The amendment to the Department’s appraisal guidance provides further clarity on how to deal with this issue and is consistent with the Government’s analysis to date.