UK transport secretary outlines aviation growth plans

UK Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander set out the government's position on aviation growth and reform in a speech to the annual conference of AirportsUK, according to an account of her remarks.

Alexander said UK aviation "continues to persevere and thrive", citing July as the busiest day for UK air traffic since 2019. She said 172 million passengers passed through UK airport gates in the first seven months of the year. Edinburgh, Cardiff and Newcastle airports have seen year-on-year growth, she added, while Birmingham has announced a £2 billion investment plan to grow passenger numbers.

On expansion, she said she approved plans to expand Luton Airport months into her role. Terminal upgrades and additional taxiways there will almost double passenger capacity to 32 million a year, she said. She also gave the green light to Gatwick's northern runway programme, which she said would unlock new destinations and hundreds of thousands of extra flights.

On sustainable aviation fuel, Alexander said the mandate is in effect, legislation has been passed for a Revenue Certainty Mechanism, and SAF projects are being funded around the country. She said the challenge is now commercial-scale delivery, and that the fuel's future would be designed with the industry rather than imposed on it.

She said the Civil Aviation Bill would place a single safety rulebook with the CAA, replacing what she described as the current fragmented model. Airspace should be the safest in the world and flexible enough to keep pace with new technology, she said, adding that the Bill delivers on that ambition.

Alexander closed by describing airports as central to the Labour government's plans to restore growth across Britain, pointing to the jobs they create and the trade they support.