HL Deb 05 March 1981 vol 417 cc1506-8

3.29 p.m.

Baroness Burton of Coventry

My Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question which stands in my name on the Order Paper.

The Question was as follows:

To ask Her Majesty's Government whether British Airways can make a recommendation to the International Air Transport Association about the rules governing the availability of cheap air fares; and, if so, whether Government approval is necessary before any such recommendation can be made.

Lord Trefgarne

My Lords, the International Air Transport Association is a trade association of airlines. Member airlines are entitled to make such proposals to the association as they wish. Her Majesty's Government's prior approval is not necessary.

Baroness Burton of Coventry

My Lords, may I ask the Minister whether Her Majesty's Government's approval would be necessary if a recommendation were accepted by IATA before it was put into operation? Secondly, may I ask him whether he is aware of the difficulty that, whereas he told the House yesterday that the international community must break down its own bulwarks of protectionism, IATA has told the Government that it can do nothing in this matter because this Government will not use the law to deal with this particular practice. What does the Minister suggest that we should do?

Lord Trefgarne

My Lords, I would say to all that that the noble Baroness is a little confused in her mind. So far as the adoption of IATA recommendations and the subsequent approval of Her Majesty's Government are concerned, the question of whether or not we would have to approve such a recommendation would depend upon what that recommendation was and whether it affected our international agreements, to which I referred at some length yesterday. As for IATA suggesting the cure to the problem which the noble Baroness has brought to my attention on so many occasions, the long-term cure to that problem, as I have said to her on, I think, each and every one of those occasions, is that we persuade our international partners to agree to a more competitive and realistic regime of air fares.

Baroness Burton of Coventry

My Lords, may I ask the noble Lord whether he is aware that, if I am confused, he is very dilatory in this particular matter? Is he aware that some 44 major airlines deal with this matter through their own bucket shops? And as these airlines would like the matter to be put on to a proper basis, so that these tickets were available to all travellers everywhere, what does this Government propose to do to help to bring that about?

Lord Trefgarne

My Lords, the recommendation from IATA for a new régime of air fares, particularly on the European routes, is one that I have no doubt the Government would hasten to approve.

Baroness Elliot of Harwood

My Lords, may I ask the noble Lord why there is this hold up? Every time he very kindly gives an answer it is always the same one, namely, "We are waiting for IATA". Why cannot we, as members of IATA, as leaders in Europe, call a meeting of the IATA members to deal with this subject straight away, so that people are not breaking the law? What is so irritating is that people are breaking the law and one cannot do that in this country without being prosecuted, but in fact nobody is being prosecuted. Why cannot Her Majesty's Government call an IATA conference and get this matter straightened out once and for all?

Lord Trefgarne

My Lords, the Government are not a member of IATA. We have no power to call a meeting of IATA, as my noble friend suggests. That is for the member airlines to do—British Airways, for example, as a member of IATA is entitled to do that, and indeed does—but the problem is that, once a meeting of IATA is called, for any conclusion to be effective there has to be a consensus within IATA and that has proved difficult to achieve.