Ulster Unionist Peer Lord Empey, who has introduced a Private Members Bill into Parliament to protect landing slots at Heathrow Airport for UK regions, today warned that the very thing he fears most could be about to happen.
Lord Empey said:
“In one of the major national newspapers this week, there was speculation that Heathrow was 'likely to ditch its domestic routes to Aberdeen, Glasgow, Leeds Bradford, Belfast and Newcastle.'
“The article went on to say that without permission to build a third runway, Heathrow would have to be more selective in the routes it has because of the potential for more profit to be made in using the landing and take-off slots for long haul international flights to emerging cities in China and the far east.
“This is what I fear most - and the Government has no power whatsoever to intervene to prevent the isolation of our major regional cities.
“What use is there in talking about a northern powerhouse if cities such as Leeds/Bradford and Newcastle lose their direct connections to the national hub airport at Heathrow?
“In the case of Northern Ireland, we depend even more heavily on this connection because we have no rail or road alternative to the mainland.
“The simple fact is that US or other business people are not going to travel from abroad to come to Northern Ireland if they have to spend hours in very complicated travelling arrangements around London to get to secondary airports. In a similar fashion our own population would lose significant connectivity with the national hub airport resulting in additional time and cost needed to get around the world, whether on business or pleasure journeys.”
“My Bill will get a Second Reading on 19th June. I have written to Theresa Villiers MP, Regional Development Minister Danny Kennedy MLA and to the Regional Development Committee at Stormont seeking support for my proposal which would give to the Secretary of State for Transport power to treat such routes as pieces of national infrastructure and intervene to prevent the regions from being isolated.
“I hope the business and tourism communities will also lend my Bill their support so we can protect our critical air routes to London Heathrow.”