25 October 2011

A lack of hub airport capacity could cost the economy up to £1.2bn a year in lost trade and must be tackled if the UK is to maintain its global competitiveness, the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) said on Thursday.

In its response to the Government’s consultation, Developing a sustainable framework for UK aviation, the UK’s leading business group says that having an international airport hub is vital to the economy, and that the Government’s plan must address the issue of capacity in south east England.

Katja Hall, CBI Chief Policy Director, said ‘the UK’s international aviation hub at Heathrow is already operating at 98% capacity. The Government must explore all sensible ideas for resolving the need for more UK hub airport capacity, as well as addressing environmental and noise concerns, which industry is fully committed to.

‘Linking Heathrow and Gatwick by high-speed rail is certainly not a viable solution. And ducking the issue would mean losing more trade to fast-growing hubs elsewhere in Europe.’