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Charges for Oxygen (Airlines)

It is a privilege to serve under your chairmanship, Mr. Jones. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Carmarthen, West and South Pembrokeshire (Nick Ainger) on securing this debate. I also congratulate the British Lung Foundation, the Pulmonary Hypertension Association UK and the Muscular Dystrophy Campaign on their work to raise the profile of this issue in many ways and with many parliamentarians, including those who have signed early-day motion 1444. This debate gives me the opportunity to respond to some of the points raised and to set out the current position. After that I shall turn to the position of airlines, in particular, UK airlines—the point of immediate concern—and then expand on how we might proceed. By definition, aviation is an international business. Many of the airlines to which my hon. Friend referred are international companies based in other parts of the world—not just in Europe, but beyond—and the issues that arise are common across the world. Furthermore, a substantial body of international law governs the operation of airlines. That legislation, whether created by the International Civil Aviation Organisation or, for European states, the EU is designed to support and help aviation consumers, whoever they might be. Rights of disabled people and those with reduced mobility, from whatever cause, are established under European regulation 1107, to which my hon. Friend referred. The regulation is fully supported by the UK Government and enforced through statutory instrument 2007/1895. However, as he will know, the regulation does not impose specific obligations on airlines to carry or provide oxygen in the cabin. However, to help the UK air transport industry to comply with its obligations under the regulation, the Department published a revised code of practice entitled, "Access to Air Travel for Disabled Persons and Persons with Reduced Mobility". Section 7 of the latest edition of the code, published in July 2008, includes a section on oxygen advising that air carriers may approve the carriage of small gaseous oxygen or air cylinders—not exceeding 5 kg gross mass—required for medical use, but notes that carriers will wish to ensure that these do not pose a risk to security.