§ Miss McIntoshTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will he seek access to(a) cabotage rights and (b) ownership of US carriers by UK carriers in the forthcoming UK-US bilateral aviation negotiations. [122080]
§ Mr. MullinThis Government will continue to press for the removal of all barriers to fair competition in the UK-US aviation market, including the refusal of cabotage rights and the restrictions on foreign ownership of US carriers. However, as cabotage and foreign ownership and control are banned by US law, it would require a change in US law to remove these barriers. The timetable for their removal must therefore extend beyond the horizon of the current round of negotiations.
§ Mr. JenkinTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what representations he has received regarding the problems experienced with the theoretical knowledge examinations for the JAA Air Transport Pilot Licence; and what action he intends to take as a result of these representations. [122483]
§ Mr. Mullin[holding answer 16 May 2000]: The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) is responsible for the day-to-day aviation safety regulation, including the licensing of pilots. The CAA shares the concern of those in the aviation industry and other interested parties over the recent disappointing results of those candidates who 141W participated in the Joint Aviation Requirements Flight Crew Licensing (JAR-FCL) examinations. It is also aware of the importance of achieving a smooth transition to the new JAR-FCL examinations, but this change has been less smooth than originally was hoped. The CAA is keen to maintain a high level of standards within the UK, but none the less is looking closely into the failure rate of these examinations. I shall write to the hon. Member shortly with details of the CAA's findings and actions.