Durham Tees Valley Airport

Debate between John Hayes and Alex Cunningham

Wednesday 22nd November 2017 Westminster Hall

[Mr Hayes]

Yes, I know; that was not lost on me. As I said, my own interest in Tees Valley began when I was in an earlier ministerial role and met some of the employers that the hon. Gentleman speaks about, in order to discuss their needs; I think I was the Minister responsible for skills at the time. I am well aware of the contribution that that part of our country makes to the economy as a whole, as well as to the locality. I understand the dynamism present there and the connections to other places and other countries—the international aspect that he reprised in his speech. Of course, central to all that are good communications and good infrastructure, the ability of both people and goods to travel to and from that place.

The hon. Gentleman is right to say that in that context the decline in services at Durham Tees Valley airport in recent years is a matter of regret. There is no doubt about that, as he said. I have the opportunity, therefore, to respond on the Government’s behalf to the wider points that the hon. Gentleman made about regional airports, because he mentioned that the issue is not wholly about Durham Tees Valley airport but about regional airports and their relationship to our aviation strategy. I want to say a few words about that at the outset and come back to the specifics that he mentioned.

[Alex Cunningham]

Will the Minister give way?

[Mr Hayes]

I will; I am about to begin my exciting account of our views on regional airports, but perhaps the hon. Gentleman will contribute to that.

[Alex Cunningham]

I am most certainly looking forward to that. Does the Minister agree that Heathrow, with all its ambitions for the third runway, could actually help regional airports, particularly Durham Tees Valley, by saying now that it will ensure that we have slots from Durham Tees Valley into Heathrow?

[Mr Hayes]

Yes; connectivity matters and I will speak about that in a moment. The hon. Gentleman made his point forcefully and put it on the record, which I am sure he wanted to do.

My view is clear: airports across the UK, including those in north-east England, make a vital contribution to the growth of regional local economies, as well as providing convenient means by which passengers can travel to other locations in the United Kingdom and other airports, as the hon. Gentleman suggests. They encourage investment, potential for trade and, as he and others have said, valuable local jobs, a base for the development of skills—many skills related to aviation are provided in those local airports—and they provide a means by which we can balance our economy. They can allow the growth of localities that are distant from south-east England but are none the less vital to our economic wellbeing, so they play many roles.

We have 40 commercial airports across the country, which ensure that 80% of the UK’s population are within 90 minutes of at least two airports. The UK has direct flights to over 370 destinations in more than 100 countries across the world. Those connections—this is the point that the hon. Gentleman made emphatically—provide huge benefits for the cities and regions of the airports that they serve. The hon. Gentleman will know, because he is interested in the subject, that the Government continue to recognise that importance. A priority for the aviation strategy that we are developing will be to ensure that the aviation sector continues to provide and improve connectivity across the regions and nations of the UK.

The hon. Gentleman will also know that this summer we published a call for evidence on the development of that strategy. We sought views on those very issues and we want to develop a strategy that takes full account of the role of airports across the country. Of course, it is true that there are major international airports in our kingdom, but they are not all that matters. The other airports matter, too—for all the reasons that the hon. Member for Sedgefield gave, and that I have amplified. We received a large number of responses to the call for evidence, which we are currently analysing, and we will consult further on the issues raised—including how to encourage connectivity—for exactly the reasons that have been argued. It is very important that an aviation strategy thinks strategically about the effect of connectivity not only to local economies but to our economy more broadly.

In those terms, I welcome this debate as a further contribution to that consideration. I invite hon. Members in Westminster Hall and others, more widely across the House, to contribute to that consultative process. It is really important that we base what we do on the understanding by different Members across the House of the effect of connectivity—particularly access to airports—in their localities and their regions. I recognise and value that.

Tees Valley airport, as the hon. Gentleman said, has enjoyed a level of investment, notwithstanding the challenges that it faces. Only this month, as he knows, a £250,000 terminal improvement programme was completed. That followed the announcement of the new services by Loganair, which will run weekly flights between Durham Tees Valley and Aberdeen, as well as non-stop flights six days a week linking Durham Tees Valley with Norwich. I am pleased to note that the airport’s public initiative, flying for the future, which highlights the airport’s key role in the Tees Valley area, shares some of the ambitions that the hon. Gentleman set out.

There is an interesting history of the particularity of the arrangements prevailing in respect of the governance of Tees Valley airport—Durham Tees Valley airport: I do not want to undersell Durham, as Durham is etched on my heart, as the hon. Gentleman probably knows. The airport was sold by the local authorities, for £500,000 I think, back in 2003 if my memory serves me right. The five local authorities concerned are still represented on the board, are they not? I suppose that they must be as distressed by the loss being made annually as anyone else, given that they are board members and share some responsibility for the airport’s governance—although they are minority shareholders, in the way that he described.

At the end of the day, what is currently happening at Durham Tees Valley airport clearly is not working. The airport is making a loss and it is not fulfilling some of the potential that the hon. Gentleman wishes for it—as does the whole Chamber, I guess. The Mayor has been in discussions with the current owners, Peel Airports. In the end, it is a commercial matter. Being mindful of the debate, I took the trouble to ring the Mayor yesterday to take his view on the issue and to ask what he felt was the Government’s role in it. He made it very clear, as I anticipated that he might, that it is not a matter for the Government, but very much a local matter, and it has to be settled locally. The Government have no competence in it. Of course, it is right to assume that they take an active interest in it, because it relates to the development of the strategy that I have described. As we care about regional airports, we would be bound to have an interest in it, but it is not for us to give power to local people to make decisions and then for me to impose what I think on local people. That would be quite wrong and no one in Westminster Hall today would want me to do that.

[Alex Cunningham]

Perhaps the Minister has answered my question before I have posed it. The local authority owns about 12% of the airport, but in the Minister’s discussions with the Mayor, did he offer the Mayor any advice on his grand plan to buy the airport, at the cost of tens of millions of pounds? Assuming—judging by his speech a few seconds ago—that the Minister did not offer him advice, what advice would he offer him now?

[Mr Hayes]

I am not sure that it would be appropriate for me to advise the Mayor on a local commercial matter. He did not seek my advice and I think that it would have been impertinent of me to offer it. I recognise that the Mayor has already made an outstanding contribution to the life, health and wellbeing of local people in Tees Valley, and I have every confidence that he will continue to do so. Indeed, we have already said that the airport matters—that is the essence of this debate. It is great that both local Members of Parliament, regardless of political party, and the Mayor are united, not only in their determination to do right by local people, but in their clear view that the airport is critical to local wellbeing.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between John Hayes and Alex Cunningham

Thursday 19th October 2017 Commons Chamber

[Alex Cunningham (Stockton North) (Lab)]

12. What assessment he has made of the effectiveness of legislation on the taxi and private hire vehicle industries.

[The Minister for Transport Legislation and Maritime (Mr John Hayes)]

Another opportunity to inform, another chance to perform—what is better than that, Mr Speaker? As my hon. Friend the Member for Hornchurch and Upminster (Julia Lopez) may know, the Law Commission provided a report on reforming taxi and private hire vehicle legislation, since which the sector has undergone profound and rapid change. With characteristic assiduity and determination, I will lead the response to such change, so protecting passenger wellbeing.

[Mr Hayes]

As I glanced at the Order Paper, as you must also have done, Mr Speaker, I noticed my hon. Friend’s change of name due to the happy event of her marriage, on which the whole House will want to congratulate her. [Hon. Members: “Hear, hear.”] She has become our own J.Lo.

My discussions with the Mayor are regular. The Government are determined to find a way forward on taxi regulation. This is not just about the capital; we need to consider the whole issue of taxi licensing. As I have said, our absolute determination is for public safety and wellbeing, but we have to balance that with consumer choice.

[Alex Cunningham]

Sex offenders and others banned from driving taxis by local authorities are providing the same service simply by applying for a licence to drive a minibus. Will the Minister continue the work done by me and his predecessor on closing that loophole?

[Mr Hayes]

I met Leeds City Council just yesterday to discuss such issues. Licensing poses real challenges, which is why I set up a working party to consider the whole matter following a Westminster Hall debate on this subject. That working party will consider the very issues that the hon. Gentleman and many others have raised and then report back to me, and it would be reasonable for us to publish its findings early in the new year.