Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department has undertaken an impact assessment on (a) noise pollution and (b) air pollution that would be caused by the changes to flight paths proposed under the Heathrow Airspace and Future Operations Consultation.

The Appraisal of Sustainability^[1] that accompanies the Airports National Policy Statement provides a strategic level assessment of the potential noise and air pollution impacts, based on indicative flight paths.

If expansion proceeds, the exact noise and pollution impacts will depend on the final flight path design which must be approved through the Civil Aviation Authority’s (CAA) Airspace Change Process.

This regulatory process will provide further opportunities for stakeholders to be informed by, and comment on, more detailed flightpath proposals. The process also requires that the feedback received by the sponsor of the change is taken into consideration fully before the final proposal is submitted to the CAA for regulatory approval.

^[1] https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/appraisal-of-sustainability-for-the-proposed-airports-national-policy-statement