§ Sir George Youngasked the Secretary of State for Trade (1) if he will rearrange the two easterly flight paths to Heathrow so they do not converge over central Ealing;
26W(2) if he will arrange the flight paths over central Ealing so that they go over the golf courses and parks in the north, instead of the more densely populated part in the centre.
§ Mr. Clinton DavisNo. It is my policy to make route changes only where major overall public benefit will result. I do not consider that either of the re-routeings suggested by the hon. Member meets this criterion. I am sending him a memorandum on aircraft noise in Ealing which goes into more detail on this matter.
§ Sir George Youngasked the Secretary of State for Trade what the impact will be on traffic over Ealing after constructing a fourth terminal at Heathrow.
§ Mr. Clinton DavisAssessments of the noise climate around Heathrow assuming construction of both a fourth and fifth terminal are contained in "Airport Strategy for Great Britain: Part 1 The London Area", copies of which were placed in the House of Commons Library last year. The assessments show a steady improvement in the noise situation over the whole period to 1990.
§ Mr. Bidwellasked the Secretary of State for Trade when Heathrow flight paths were last reviewed.
§ Mr. Clinton DavisThis is a continuing process, and changes in routes are made when major overall public benefit will result.