Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what his Department's policy is on reducing the noise pollution caused by training planes near North Wales towns and tourist areas.

As home of two-thirds of MOD’s fast-jet training, RAF Valley has seen significant investment in recent years, cementing the station’s position as one of the largest employers in the area and supporting and strengthening the local economy. This does, however, mean a level of flying locally is inevitable.

However, we continue to make every effort to ensure training flights are fairly distributed, and we are working hard to remove remaining restrictions that reduce overwater activity as part of this. Although much of the airspace over the Irish Sea is reserved for civilian airways and airliner traffic, RAF Valley continues to distribute Texan training to other areas when this is practicable and offers effective training opportunities.