Baroness Redfern – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Redfern on 2016-09-15.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to promote the role of regional airports in stimulating the UK economy.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

The government made clear in its Aviation Policy Framework, that airports across the UK make a vital contribution to the growth and recovery of regional and local economies and their role in helping to accommodate wider forecast growth in demand for aviation in the UK. The government recognises that regional air connectivity across the UK is also very important and announced in November 2015 that it will provide around £7million of start-up aid from the Regional Air Connectivity Fund over the next three financial years to support 11 new air routes from smaller airports. The Fund is also providing support to two Public Service Obligation routes from London to Dundee and Newquay. The UK government has also recently agreed in principle to support the air route between City of Derry Airport and London.