Airport Capacity — Statement

Part of the debate – in the House of Lords at 6:25 pm on 14 December 2015.

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Photo of The Bishop of Bristol The Bishop of Bristol Bishop 6:25, 14 December 2015

My Lords, can the Minister comment on the remarks made by the chief executive officer of International Airlines Group, who said that as far as the airlines are concerned there is basically no business case at all for the extension of Gatwick? When he focused his comments on the Heathrow proposal, he said that the runway would cost £182 million but the total cost would be somewhere around £18.6 billion. He went on to say that this is a,

“gold-plated airport to fleece its customers”,

and that he would consider moving his business either to Madrid or Dublin. If we are to spend all that money on one of these options and if the response of the airlines is to move business away, with the attendant jobs, will the Minister say something about that to your Lordships’ House?