§ John McDonnellTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport following the publication of the White Paper on the future of airport expansion in the UK, whether the chosen site for expansion in the South East will have to undergo a planning inquiry. [133335]
§ Mr. McNultyNo decisions have yet been taken on future airport capacity in the South East. The White Paper will not convey statutory authorisation for any development. That would need to be sought subsequently. Where an airport operator brings forward a planning application, under the major infrastructure projects provision in the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Bill currently before the House, the Government will have powers to call in planning applications which it considers to be of national or regional importance. A Planning Inspector will then be appointed to consider the application and make recommendations to Ministers.
§ John McDonnellTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment his Department has made of the likely timescale between the publication of the White Paper on the future of airport expansion in the UK later this year and a final decision being taken on the location of expansion. [133336]
§ Mr. McNultyThe air transport White Paper will set out the Government's policies on any preferred locations for future airport capacity. Planning approval for any new capacity will need to be sought subsequently. For the purposes of the SERAS study, it was assumed that following the White Paper any new runway might require two years for detailed design and project definition and a further two years for authorisation.