Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what his policy is on the mixed-use development of aerodromes.

The revised draft National Planning Policy Framework recognises the significant contribution that aviation makes to economic growth and the importance of maintaining a national network of general aviation facilities. It requires local authorities, when preparing their Local Plans, to take account of the role of airfields in meeting business, leisure, training and emergency service needs. It also highlights the importance of making the most effective use of land, especially previously developed land, and the general value of mixed-use scheme. The revised National Planning Policy Framework will be published this Summer.

Planning guidance supporting the Framework makes clear local authorities should consider the interconnectivity between airfields of different sizes and that they should have regard to the Aviation Policy Framework.

Planning law requires that applications for planning permission must be determined in accordance with the development plan, unless material considerations indicate otherwise. The weight to be given to other material considerations, which may include the role of airfields in serving business and other needs, is a matter for the decision maker to determine in each case.