Mr (South Holland and The
Deepings) (Con):...Governments in democratic polities
struggle with big, long-term, strategic decisions, and that
affects our infrastructure particularly. They struggle because
those who make such decisions rarely get the credit, as they are
long out of office once the impact of the decisions has been
felt; because there is no political payback, typically, in a
five-year period; and, more nobly, because they are reluctant to
tie the hands of their successors. For those reasons, successive
Governments over time have tended to duck the kind of issues we
are debating tonight, and it is to the credit of the Secretary of
State, his Department and this Government that they are taking
such a decision. That they are doing so is not surprising, given
their history. When I was a Transport Minister, we took a very
big decision about road investment, with the biggest road
investment strategy of modern times. Crossrail was a product of a
long-term decision of the kind I am describing. And when I was
Energy Minister, our coalition Government took a big decision
about nuclear power, so this Government have a disproportionately
good record against the backdrop I have described. It is right of
course to consider the impact of such decisions, and the issues
that have, understandably, been raised tonight in particular
concern air quality, noise, traffic and compensation. Air quality
is about a much bigger issue than just airports. We need to
reconsider what we do about air quality and the Government have
done that. The work we have done on the electric charging
infrastructure, autonomous vehicles and trying to move towards
cleaner means of travel will have a real impact on emissions over
time. Technology will change, too. It is likely that all modes of
transport will become cleaner and less polluting than they are
now, but we are making the decision now and it is very hard for
us to see that, hard to imagine what the world might be like in
20, 30 or 40 years’ time...
(Milton Keynes South)
(Con):...I am satisfied that the Government are
listening to the Select Committee’s recommendations, if not in
the NPS then at some other point in the process. I am also
satisfied that technology will help to address many of the
justifiable concerns that people have. Aircraft technology will
deliver quieter and less polluting planes. Electric vehicles will
remove many of the surface access concerns, and there are
solutions so that moving aircraft from the stand to the runway
involves less emissions. All in all, we cannot afford to delay
this decision...
Mr (Slough)
(Lab):...First, on climate change, we must bear
traffic noise and air quality in mind. Yes, a new runway will
mean more flights and more traffic, but what would be the impact
on our environment if we do not build a new runway? The sad truth
is that, if we do not build it, others will. New runways would be
built in other parts of Europe, and the net result would be no
different. The Government and Heathrow airport contend that they
will have electric vehicle fleets and less noisy, less polluting
aircraft, along with other mitigation
efforts...
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