§ Mr. Michael McNair-Wilsonasked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will state the names and organisations of those on the Third London Airport Directorate, the functions of the directorate and its relationship to the proposed Maplin Development Authority.
§ Mr. RipponThe Third London Airport Directorate is a multi-disciplinary group, within DOE, responsible for coordinating all aspects of the Maplin project. It is staffed by officials of the Department, DTI, BAA, Essex County Council and Southend Borough Council. It has close working contacts with the other Government Departments and the main agencies involved such as the BAA, CAA, PLA, HRS, Nature Conservancy, and so on. Until such time as the Maplin 85W Development Authority is operational the directorate is also responsible for planning and supervising the civil engineering studies which are a necessary preliminary to reclamation work.