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Health and Education

The hon. Gentleman is right. We are making common cause because, as he has said, the Civil Aviation Authority, otherwise known as the ““Campaign Against Aviation””, is about to publish a new policy on charging for its inspection and licensing functions, the effect of which threatens to increase general aviation’s costs by up to 170 per cent. I understand that British Airways and Monarch Airlines are driving that policy, because they want to see transparency of charging by the CAA. Today, I will do little more than serve notice that I intend to mount a vigorous challenge to that attempt to inflict severe damage on general aviation. I am delighted to be joined by my fellow aviator of 17 years standing, my aviating friend, the hon. Member for Montgomeryshire (Lembit Öpik), and we hope that Government Members will join us. The CAA is due to publish its proposals on 10 June, but we expect the victims to include those who organise air shows, because members of the Air Display Association Europe, of which I have the privilege of being president, could be put out of business by the vastly increased costs. British Airways and other airlines draw some 70 per cent. of their aircrew from the pool of those who have learned to fly by paying their own way or obtaining sponsorship from the Air League or the Guild of Air Pilots and Air Navigators. The airlines are apparently seeking to transfer about £1.5 million of CAA costs to general aviation, which is less than British Airways paid a few years ago to have absurd, politically correct graffiti, over which my noble Friend Baroness Thatcher put her handkerchief, painted on the tail fins of its aircraft. It is simply galling that an organisation which has just reported annual profits of £540 is intent upon inflicting such damage on general and sporting aviation. We—this includes me and the hon. Member for Montgomeryshire—pay about £5 million in VAT on the fuel that we consume as private aviators. British Airways pays no VAT on fuel or tickets, so we more than pay our way—I hope that Mr. Rod Eddington notes that point before he returns to Australia. The issue is not confined to those of us who engage in recreational and sporting aviation. Air displays are the nation’s second largest outdoor spectator sport, attracting 6.5 million people according to the 2002 figures. I hope that hon. Members will take the time to visit their local airfields, to attend an air display, to sign early-day motion 141 and to support me, the hon. Member for Montgomeryshire and some clandestine operators on the Government Benches in our attempt to resolve the matter. The Queen’s Speech is a mixture of platitudes laced with inaccuracies, wishful-thinking and damaging proposals. I hope that it will be challenged by a Parliament that has been reinforced with so many able new Opposition Members who are prepared to hold the Government to account over the next five years.