§ Mr. JenkinTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what assessment has been made by the Safety Regulation Group of the CAA of the proposed price regulation regime for the316W NATS PPP; and if this takes full account of the RPI-X method, as affected by the proposed delay term factor. [148590]
Mr. Robert AinsworthThe advice the Government received from the Civil Aviation Authority on the price regulation regime included advice on a delay term factor. My Department had a meeting with the Group Director of Safety Regulation at which he confirmed that he was satisfied that there would be no adverse implications for safety if the CAA's advice was adopted in full.
In the event, so as to ensure a smooth transition for NATS from the public sector to the PPP, the Government set a somewhat lower price cap and a somewhat lower maximum delay term for the NATS PPP in its early years than those recommended by the CAA.