Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate his Department has made of the economic and social benefits provided by UK airports; and if he will make a statement.

The Government's assessment of the economic benefits of aviation is given in the Aviation Policy Framework, published in March 2013. The aviation sector's economic output to the UK economy in 2011 is put at around £18 billion and employing around 220,000 workers directly. It recognises that airports across the UK play an important role in securing connectivity for local populations and their contribution to local, regional and national economies.