Civil Aviation Bill

That was certainly very much one of the considerations that was weighed up. Some advocates of the proposal claimed that it would end a two-tier system; but, on closer examination, it would merely replace one form of two-tier system with another. As I say, the proposal will be considered by the Select Committee, and no doubt, it will be considered further. We do not deny the environmental impacts of aviation, which have been at the core of the debates on Second Reading and in Committee. We seek to reduce and mitigate those impacts wherever possible, but the Government remain of the view that, wherever possible, local solutions are best for local problems. We believe that airport operators will make appropriate use of the powers the Bill will make available to them to tackle environmental issues at local level. The Government have statutory powers that we can use where the voluntary approach does not suffice, and those powers will be deployed if necessary.