Your address Your address line 2 Your address line 3 Your address line 4 Your address line 5 Date: Rt Hon Hillary Benn DEFRA Nobel House 17 Smith Square London SW1P 3JR
Dear Mr Benn Implementing the White Paper on the Future of Air Transport (DfT 2003): Re-Routing of Flights over UK: TCN Consultation by NATS Changes to Flightpaths to and from Luton Airport I am writing to you regarding the consultation currently being conducted by NATS, the Air Navigation Service Provider under licence by DfT. I am not sure your interests are being best served on account of the poor publicity for the consultation, meaning that many affected are unaware and will be unable to respond; the quality of the information is poor and in some cases not trusted; there is insufficient information for the public to form a view on the impact of the proposals on their lives. It may well be the case that the flaws in the process, together with the flaws in the proposals, would leave a decision that agrees to the NATS proposal open to judicial review. I fear your White Paper on Aviation, a policy to accommodate projected growth in air transport, is in danger of experiencing a similar fate to the Conservative party’s 1990s policy named “Roads to Prosperity”. Once the general public awoke to the extent of environmental damage, in particular emissions and noise, the policy was shelved following massive objection. As a result of the present TCN consultation, belatedly the general public is awaking to the effects of the White Paper on air transport, the impacts of the enormous projected growth, and the wholesale abandonment of the tranquillity of the countryside for this. The economics of flying must surely be grossly out of balance when students choose (as they do) to fly to Berlin for £15 because rock concerts are cheaper there. So too must the tax regime be wrong with Silverjet introducing a business class service only that takes a total of just 70 (approx.) people across the
Atlantic to New York on a large airliner. If these individuals and companies were made to compensate fully for the consequences of their choices, namely the resulting environmental degradation, there would be funding aplenty to compensate those whose lives are made miserable by this massive growth in flying. Sadly, though, no amount of funding could return the countryside to peace. This is being done in the name of economic growth, yet a recent analysis by the Economist magazine indicated the economic benefits to this country of growth in air traffic are grossly overstated. Additionally the current and projected price of aircraft fuel must surely constrain demand in the future.
Just as the name Beeching is now fixed in the mind of the nation as the desecrator of the rural railway, so, I fear, unless you reverse this policy, the name of the leader of your Government may, for generations to come, become associated with the desecration of the British countryside. You can change this; I urge you to. I enclose a copy of my letter responding to the specifics of the NATS consultation and a copy of my letter to CAA. Yours sincerely
Name Enclosures: Letter to NATS Letter to CAA