The new transport secretary has emerged as a supporter of the creation of a third runway at Heathrow.
Anne-Marie Trevelyan voiced her backing for expansion of the London hub at a fringe meeting at the Conservative party conference in Birmingham.
Her stance is the opposite of former prime minister Boris Johnson who was a vocal critic of the plan.
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“I’m a supporter [of Heathrow expansion]. Aviation is a really important part of our growth picture,” Trevelyan said.
Trevelyan pointed to how expansion of Newcastle airport had helped the local economy in her Berwick-on-Tweed constituency, intimating the same impact would be seen in the capital if Heathrow gained another runway.
“An airport is an extraordinary neighbour,” she said. “Little Newcastle got an Emirates flight for the first time out to Dubai. Literally in months, you could see the shift in exports. You could see the shift in the willingness of businesses to think about exporting.
“It was almost like a cartoon – ‘Build it and they will come’. And that daily flight has completely altered the north-east’s view of exporting. What we don’t have is a direct flight to the US and that’s a real challenge.
“So I am an absolute believer, because I’ve seen what the opportunity for that international aviation hub brings to a local economy.”
Trevelyan argued that concerns raised by climate change campaigners over air pollution are no longer valid because of the development of less harmful aviation fuels.
“I need planes that need to be cleaner,” she added while discussing the introduction of green aviation corridors to key destinations.
Heathrow passenger cap lift
Her comments came as reports today reconfirmed that Heathrow plans to lift its 100,000-passengers-a-day limit later this month.
The cap, first imposed in July, was initially intended to run until September 11 but was extended until October 29 when the summer flying season ends.
Heathrow insisted in August that “passenger journeys have improved” and reported “fewer last-minute cancellations, better punctuality and shorter wait times for bags” since the cap was introduced.
Trevelyan told the meeting that the rationing of numbers coming through had helped get the supply and demand balance right and the recruitment and restoration of those support staff is “progressing at pace”.
“I would hope that by the middle of next year we are back in a normal environment [after Covid] and we will watch closely as we see those numbers tick up in the next few months.”
A Heathrow spokesperson said: “We took necessary action in July to introduce a temporary capacity cap which has since been extended through to the end of October.
“This cap resulted in fewer last-minute cancellations, better punctuality and shorter waits for bags.”
The spokesperson said that Heathrow had always intended to remove the cap as quickly as possible, but only if service levels were not eroded.
Meanwhile, Trevelyan revealed she had spent time trying to broker the future of loss-making Doncaster Sheffield airport which owner Peel Group plans to close.
An offer of £7 million was made by the local council to underwrite losses but owner Peel Group insists the airport has been economically unviable for many years.
She was also questioned over local concerns over expansion of Luton airport.
More: Heathrow loses best connected crown to US rivals
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