‘Heathrow expansion will bring economic opportunities to Wales’

The UK Government’s Secretary of State for Transport, Chris Grayling, on the opportunities for the Welsh economy from a third runway at Heathrow.

WE are embarking on a period of significant national change and I want Welsh businesses and communities to know the government is determined to make sure your towns and cities have the connections they need to thrive in the global market.

Aviation expansion is hugely important for Wales, and the whole of the UK, to boost jobs and promote our innovative industries on the world stage.

We recently published the draft Airports National Policy Statement, setting out the planning criteria that should be met before a proposed new runway at Heathrow Airport could gain consent.

For the people and businesses of Wales the new runway could provide better links to more destinations around the world, a wider choice of airlines, and lower fares through increased competition at Heathrow.

The expansion will have a direct impact on the economy of Wales too. According to Heathrow, it currently handles £2.8bn of Welsh exports each year.

The new runway could double the airport’s freight capacity, linking Welsh businesses with fast growing global markets.

Access to London and Heathrow from Wales will be improved by the upgrade to the Great Western rail line. Cardiff Airport is seeing growing passenger numbers, reaching more than 1.3 million in 2016.

We expect it to continue attracting new airlines and growing its network of destinations, and expansion at Heathrow could provide passengers with even more choice and opportunity.

With a new runway, Heathrow plans to double its freight capacity. It already handles more freight by value than all other UK airports combined, accounting for 31% of non-EU trade.

The expansion would create even more opportunities for exporters in Wales and other nations.

For instance, I hear that Newport firm SPTS Technologies exports more than 95% of its products, all of which are shipped from Heathrow.

The company says that Heathrow’s extra capacity for shipping freight could potentially open up new trading routes and lower costs, while new routes could help improve connections for international customers visiting its facilities.

The UK Government wants people and businesses in the area to put their views forward.

Today we’ll be listening to Cardiff ’s businesses, community groups, manufacturers, freight operators, passenger organisations, local authorities and any interested parties and encouraging them to respond to the consultation.

This government is not only making the big decisions that previous Governments didn’t, but getting on with delivering them too.

It’s all part of our Plan for Britain – to build a stronger, fairer UK with proper investment in skills and sectors, to spread prosperity and opportunity here in South Wales and around the country.

We believe the case for the new runway is compelling. Between 2009 and 2015, Heathrow slipped from being the world’s second busiest airport to the sixth busiest.

Heathrow’s two runways are full. By comparison, its main competitors – Frankfurt, Paris and Amsterdam – have ample spare runway capacity into which to grow.

We have explained why we consider the proposed runway would best meet the pressing need for new airport capacity in the south east in the draft Airports National Policy Statement, which also sets out strict planning obligations Heathrow would have to meet to get approval for the new runway.

It is out for public consultation and will be scrutinised by MPs before a final National Policy Statement could be laid in Parliament next winter.

The draft Airports National Policy Statement is a big step forward for what would be one of Britain’s most important infrastructure projects. Now it is vital that Wales is engaged in the consultation process, so it can ensure its interests are represented.

So please join the debate and make your voice heard.