Asked by: Brendan O'Hara (Scottish National Party - Argyll, Bute and South Lochaber)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when the Government plans to issue requirements for the second round of consideration of locations for a UK spaceport.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
The 2014 Government Spaceplane Review provided the groundwork for enabling spaceplane operations from the UK, including identifying key criteria for locating a UK spaceport, and identifying potential locations based on these. The Government tested the conclusions of this review through consultation and published its response in March 2015. This confirmed Campbeltown, Glasgow Prestwick and Stornoway in Scotland, Llanbedr Airfield in Wales and Newquay in England as potential spaceport locations.
Further information on the Spaceplane review and the Government consultation can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/spaceport-locations-and-criteria
Commercial spaceflight is a complex, international, and evolving market. The Government is considering a range of options on next steps that would best deliver our ambition of a spaceport, and the supporting regulatory environment for spaceflight, within this Parliament.
The Government is in discussion with the US Government on ITAR-related issues. However, ITAR applications are not a factor at this stage for potential spaceport locations but may become so if a US spaceplane operator seeks to operate from the UK.