Gatwick Airport

I do not presume to speak for other constituencies; I speak only for mine. I undertook a huge survey there, and the result was 50:50. We are committed to the ongoing success of Gatwick airport; we want to ensure that it continues to be successful. As it is no longer earmarked for expansion, many issues need to be raised with the Minister in order to ensure a place at the table on future discussions; we want to be part of the family of UK airports and to play our role, stepping up to the mark so that we can meet future challenges. Maximising use of the single runway and increasing passenger numbers to 40 million is the goal. I want to ensure that we are lucky enough—perhaps not lucky; Gatwick has earned the investment of others—to ensure that Gatwick airport does not pay for expansion elsewhere. I ask the Minister to say a few words about that; it is very important that we do not find ourselves being used as a cash cow to pay for investment at other airports, and I know that many people from around Gatwick would feel most uncomfortable were that to happen. The 2003 White Paper considered all UK airports. I ask merely that that debate continues on all airports, and that Gatwick has a seat at the table. I also want to ensure that Gatwick is not compromised by developments elsewhere. The much awaited T5 will open shortly at Heathrow, and redevelopment will continue there. Everyone accepts that it is desperately needed, as it is the UK's first and largest airport. However, I want to ensure that Gatwick remains viable while that work progresses. We can see that it will be a challenge for Gatwick, but we need to tackle the challenges head on, and deal with them. We can do that only if we are provided with a seat at the table. Other pressures are pertinent to the debate. Large areas of land around the airport were sensibly safeguarded while the debate was going on. It was the only fair and honest way to tackle a debate in which all airports were being considered for redevelopment and for further runways. That scheme was administered by BAA. Now that the debate is settled, we need clarity on what is going to happen to that land. A much expected and much welcomed housing scheme was sadly put on hold and then lost to us because of the airport debate. I fully supported that action—it would have been utterly unfair to have left Gatwick out of the debate—but we need clarity about when we can move on. Much of that land still needs to be safeguarded in order to protect the environment for those who live in the area, but some of the land will provide much needed affordable housing for those many constituents who have no other opportunity for housing. It is now clearly off the agenda, and we want to get many of those issues settled as soon as possible. I believe that Gatwick airport is the life-blood of the Gatwick diamond area. It gives us a quality of life that many people would never have achieved because of the quality of the jobs and opportunities that it offers. Of course it also brings challenges, but I believe that those challenges are worth facing. We should tackle them in a way that allows our airport to thrive and prosper but that also allows us to deal with environmental concerns. Gatwick is an important player in the UK's aviation industry—and it wants to remain one.