§ Miss McIntoshTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what assessment the Government have made of(a) the draft EU regulation on establishing common rules in the field of aviation security and (b) the recommendation of the European Parliament that member state Governments should meet an equitable share of the costs of airport security. [R] [60012]
§ Mr. JamiesonI have been asked to reply.
The Government are fully committed to the establishment of common rules for aviation security throughout Europe and regards the agreed measures in European Civil Aviation Conference (ECAC) Document 30 as the appropriate basis for doing so. It welcomes the EU initiative, which will aid compliance and views many of the amendments proposed by the European Parliament as useful clarification.
However, the UK firmly believes that the financing of aviation security should be for each individual state to determine. It is for aerodromes and airlines to decide how best to comply with the regulation within the context of the UK National Aviation Security Programme, and how associated costs are passed on to the user. This system has been used to good effect in the UK for many years.