There is an industry that contributes £50bn to national GDP. In total, the sector supports 921,000 British jobs. A decision to invest in its infrastructure could deliver between £127bn and £211bn in economic benefits by 2050. However, such a decision has been pushed back, played around with and prevaricated over for more than 50 years.
If Labour took the bold step of committing to airports expansion in their 2015 manifesto it would not only end years of uncertainty on aviation policy, but it would also be a bold economic statement about the party’s ability to deliver the jobs, growth and economic prosperity that will be fundamental to winning the next election.
At Labour party conference it was encouraging to have public commitments for a swift decision on airport capacity by a future Labour government from the shadow chancellor Ed Balls and the shadow secretary of state for transport at that time, Mary Creagh. And last month Harriet Harman, shadow secretary of state for culture, media and sport, announced Labour’s ambitious new plan to boost tourism which included focusing on how expanding airport capacity can facilitate tourists’ journeys both to and around Britain.
The United Kingdom has been home to the world’s busiest port or airport for more than half a century. Despite being a small island we have always been a world leader in terms of connectivity and global trade. London’s status as an international aviation hub plays a vital role; not only in connecting it with the rest of the world but also providing domestic links that are vital for the public and British businesses alike. From Newquay to Newcastle, from Leeds to Liverpool, the availability of flights to and from our London airports keeps families in touch, tourists travelling around the country and the UK economy moving.
Yet Heathrow airport has been at capacity for a decade. Gatwick will be full within the next ten years. All of the capital’s airports will be full by the mid-2020s, and the very earliest date a new runway could be delivered anywhere would be sometime in the middle of the next decade. Meanwhile, London is losing out to cities such as Paris, Frankfurt, Amsterdam and Madrid, which have made significant investments in their airports infrastructure and now fly to more emerging and growth economies than London.
With emerging markets forecast to overtake advanced economies’ share of global GDP by 2024 it is essential to ensure we are connected to this future growth. We trade 20 times more with countries with which we have a direct air link, and by value 40 per cent of our exports go by air, most of it in the belly holds of passenger planes. With strengthening existing or establishing new air links comes investment in Britain by overseas firms, as well as opportunities for businesses from all over the UK to export their goods quickly and easily to both new and established markets. Increased connectivity will bring with it economic opportunities, including the creation of jobs across the country.
It is in this context that Labour’s recent ‘Agenda 2030: Earning and growing our way to a higher standard of living’ is significant. Committing to airports expansion as a part of Agenda 2030 – an infrastructure investment which would be largely funded by the private sector – could form a central part of the plan to deliver higher living standards through economic growth. It could also address fundamental questions at the heart of the party’s values. How can we improve people’s lives? How can we fund investment in vital services while delivering long-term economic growth?
Indeed its worth remembering that one of the key tenets of New Labour and the previous Labour governments led by Tony Blair and Gordon Brown was marrying economic growth with social justice; a future Labour government could learn from this. Committing to infrastructure improvements, paid for largely by private investment, that would over time deliver a £100bn boost to the UK economy is not a bad starting point in this respect.
In acknowledging the importance of aviation to the economy, figures such as Ed Balls and Harriet Harman have also recognised that airports expansion can be achieved sustainably. The Committee on Climate Change recently concluded that a 60 per cent increase in flights is compatible with the UK’s overall carbon reduction targets. Furthermore, modern aircraft, including the A380 and Boeing 787 Dreamliner, are up to 60 per cent quieter than the planes they replace in airlines’ fleets.
The current domestic political situation in the UK is marked by economic uncertainty and worry. The public is not convinced that politicians can make bold economic choices to secure jobs and prosperity – which means the next election will hinge on which party can make the most convincing pitch as to why they should be the stewards of future growth.
As a final decision by the Airports Commission draws ever nearer, there will be much debate over the merits of each of the shortlisted options. However, the issue at the heart of the airports debate is not the location of a new runway but whether or not politicians will take a bold decision to secure jobs, growth and our economic future by committing to be guided by Howard Davies’ recommendations.
Airports expansion is in many ways an obvious commitment for Labour to include in its 2015 manifesto. If the party is serious about earning and growing our way to a higher standard of living, it must be brave and go for growth and commit to acting on recommendations of the Airports Commission in their manifesto – the solution is staring them plane in the face.
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Gavin Hayes is director of Let Britain Fly
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Whilst it will enrage the Green voters it is true that large numbers of people do and can fly so making it easier to reach destinations is a positive for them.
There are large numbers of people engaged in the aviation industry so supporting them will be a vote winner.
The aviation industry has cleaned up its act in the last few years so we should support them.
Yes by all means increase aviation but NOT in London. We need better airports in say Birmingham, Manchester, Newcastle, Edinburgh, etc. Then many more internal flights between all UK cities. This will add to the infrastructure of the UK OUTSIDE of London & create more jobs & connectivity. But don’t forget there will also be a need for more housing for a larger workforce & that needs to be included in private sector development plans.
Flying is for the Birds. Go by train and terra firma – the firmer the better,ie, avoid swamps. The Wright Bros, Branson, BAe,Boeing and the rest are past their sell-by date.Flying is dangerous but flying is the safest way to fly Branson tells us. Mugs that we are, we believe them. But go Google-check the daily prangs, near-misses, drunken pilots’ stats at IATA and Pilots’ Assoc of USA! Very, very grim reading – don’t read these stats if flying over Russia, China, Africa, S America… well, anywhere really. The upkeep and maintenance is non-existent on some airlines and the general crappy mechanical state of some of the world’s very old aircraft is a horror movie and ‘carcrash’ just waiting to happen – again, well, its happening, but not being reported.
Money should be spent on R&D iro rail-bullet trains running on zero-gravity costing the business and tourist traveller a fiftieth (1/50th) of the cost of an air ticket.
If you have wings then you can fly – my Parrot told me that.
Clever Parrot.
It is pathetic that decisions have been so long delayed. The major impact has been on flights from Asia which are choosing to go to the continent because they cannot get access to London. Asia is far and away the fastest growing continent. To push away its tourists and its commercial potential is a stupid act of self harm. It is not a question of London vs the regions; both should expand. And the sooner the better.