Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether she plans to designate Heathrow expansion as Critical National Growth Infrastructure; and what assessment she has made of the potential impact of that designation on the planning process.

The draft Heathrow Expansion National Policy Statement (HENPS) proposes designating Heathrow expansion as Critical National Growth Infrastructure (CNGI), recognising its potential importance to national growth. How that proposed CNGI policy would interact with the planning process is set out in the draft HENPS, located here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6a3923ed0bea238415c9a3a9/proposed-draft-revision-to-the-anps-to-be-known-as-the-henps.pdf

We have consulted on this approach, and the Government will carefully consider the views received through the consultation, alongside the Transport Select Committee's recommendations, before setting out its response and any next steps in relation to the HENPS.