Airports Commission Interim Report – Content & Implications
SASIG met on Monday 13 January 2014 to discuss initial reactions to the content and implications of the Airports Commission’s Interim Report.
Following from that discussion, the priority areas for SASIG & its membership to focus on as the Commission’s programme progresses were felt to be:
- Maintain involvement in the Commission process as appropriate.
- Provide input to the Government as well.
- Ascertain from the Commission the full basis on which its position has been based.
- Should full disclosure of background information not be forthcoming, raise this issue with the Government indicating omission(s) and implication(s).
- Input to the Commission, and Government, on the basis that:
- phase two of the Commission’s work must deliver a thorough, net economic assessment* if local communities are to capture their share of the aviation sector’s economic and social benefits; and
- the costs and extent of stimulated demand for land, housing & commercial activity, integrated road and rail provision, blight and emissions – noise, air, and climate change, must all be clearly accounted for (a net economic assessment is one that takes account of the full infrastructure, urbanisation and catalytic effects of aviation development).
- If the factors required for a net economic assessment are not adequately incorporated in formation of the Commission’s recommendations, we must work through the Government to achieve this.
- Work through the Government to ensure the opportunity costs of focussing investment and development in London and South East England have been fully evaluated in setting that focus, and determined to be acceptable in terms of not diminishing regeneration and development outside London and South East England.
- Press for the Independent Aviation Noise Authority to be: truly independent; a body with effective powers; and appropriately involved in the planning process.
This paper was submitted to the Airports Commission subsequent to that meeting.