Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their policy on airport expansion.

The Airports National Policy Statement was designated as government policy in June 2018 following a vote in the House of Commons. It sets out that there is a need to increase airport capacity in the South East of England by 2030 by constructing one new runway and that this need is best met by the Northwest runway scheme at Heathrow Airport.

The Northwest runway scheme is to be fully funded and delivered by the private sector. It is for Heathrow to demonstrate that it can meet its environmental obligations, that the project can be financed and built and that the business case is realistic.

Beyond Heathrow, the Government is supportive of airports across the UK making best use of their existing runways as long as they address the economic and environmental impacts and proposed mitigations. As part of the planning process for airport applications it is expected that the relevant planning body will scrutinise whether a scheme is in-line with government policy.