Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has the power to enforce landing slot requirements at Heathrow Airport to ensure (a) access for domestic flights and (b) the use of cleaner aircraft by airlines in the event of a third runway being built at that airport.

Under European Union regulations airport slot allocation in the UK is managed by a designated co-ordinator independently of the Government, the Civil Aviation Authority and other interested parties.

However, the Secretary of State for Transport made clear in his recent statement on airport capacity that the Government will take all necessary steps to enhance the UK’s domestic air connectivity including, where appropriate, ring-fencing a proportion of new slots for routes supported by public service obligations.