Mike Kane MP: speeches 2024

Speeches

• 14 Nov 2024 · Aircraft Noise: Local Communities · Hansard source

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  I am happy to meet all individual Members who want to improve the quality of people’s lives around our ports and airports. Heathrow uses a differential charging structure for aircraft operating at the airport. The structure encourages the use of best-in-class aircraft, imposing higher charges for noisier aircraft and lower charges for quieter ones. Heathrow encourages the use of quieter planes by adjusting the differential in night and post-midnight charges for unscheduled operations, with the aim of reducing those operations after 11.30 pm. The Government, too, are committed to research into aviation noise, and two studies are under way. One study that has been commissioned is on the effects of aviation noise on sleep disturbance and annoyance and how they vary at different times at night. The study is a collaboration between St George’s University London, the National Centre for Social Research, Noise Consultants Ltd and the University of Pennsylvania, and is the first study of aviation noise effects on sleep disturbance in the UK for 30 years. The first stage of the aviation night noise effects—“Annie”—study involved a cross-sectional survey of 4,000 people who live near eight UK airports to assess the association between aircraft noise exposure at night and subjective assessments of sleep quality and annoyance. That stage of the study is currently going through peer review, and we expect to publish it next year. The second stage involves an observational study of individuals recruited from the survey to assess the association between aircraft noise exposure and objective sleep quality. That involves assessments of sleep disturbance and sound level measurements in participants’ bedrooms. That stage of the study is currently in the field. Taken together, these pieces of evidence will be used to inform future policies for managing night-time aviation noise exposure and to assist with the management and mitigation of health impacts on local communities. They will also support any wider assessment of the costs and benefits of night flying. Our priority remains to deliver a high-quality, robust evidence base, and we are taking all the necessary steps to deliver that. We are now working on the basis that we will publish the full evidence base from the “Annie” study in autumn 2026.

• 5 Nov 2024 · Flight Cancellations · Hansard source

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  I refer the hon. Member to my previous answer: I have already raised regional connectivity with BA and other airlines. Odhran Dunne, chief executive officer of Visit Derry, has said there is a “fantastic buzz” around that airport at the moment, and around what is happening in the north-west. It is great to see the work going on with the Northern Ireland Executive in supporting that airport, which is a driver of the regional economy.

• 5 Nov 2024 · Flight Cancellations · Hansard source

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  Business and tourism are vital for growth, as the hon. Gentleman said. We did have some connectivity problems and cancellations due to Storm Ashley recently, and I am sorry to hear about his constituents missing appointments, particularly his disabled constituents. The Secretary of State will lead work in this space, because accessibility on flights is vital. Belfast is still served by 22 to 35 flights a day, and I suggest that the hon. Gentleman takes the issue up with airlines and the airport.

• 5 Nov 2024 · Flight Cancellations · Hansard source

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  It is great that the Northern Ireland Executive are up and running. In the devolution settlement they will be getting more money, and it is a matter for them how they spend it. On Northern Ireland and particularly Belfast, only this week easyJet—the biggest airline operating out of there, providing 3.8 million seats—has introduced new routes to Prague and Marrakech, and new aircraft. The future is bright for aviation in the Province.

• 5 Nov 2024 · Flight Cancellations · Hansard source

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  I thank the Chair of the Transport Committee for the excellent work that she does in this field. Cancellations are bad for business, tourism and passengers. The public service obligation arrangements come up for renewal regularly, and I think that flight prices, connectivity and cancellations should be looked at in the round when we come to renew them.

• 5 Nov 2024 · Flight Cancellations · Hansard source

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  I thank the hon. Member for his question. I recently met the chief executive of British Airways and raised regional connectivity.

• 5 Nov 2024 · Flight Cancellations · Hansard source

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  I know that the issue of connectivity across the UK is of great interest to the hon. Gentleman and many of his constituents, as connectivity strengthens the bond between our communities. Cancellations affect passengers and businesses, who rely on punctual services and connections, and have an impact on confidence. It is the responsibility of airlines and airports to work together to minimise delays and cancellations. Connectivity across our country is vital; the Government jointly fund three public service obligation routes to London, including from Derry/Londonderry. However, the UK aviation market operates predominantly in the private sector, and it is for airports to invest in their infrastructure and for airlines to determine the routes that they operate. I recognise the importance of Belfast City and Belfast International airports for local communities and businesses. The Department for Transport is actively engaging with regional airports, including those in Northern Ireland, to understand how the Government can support and unlock opportunities for growth.

• 5 Nov 2024 · Flight Cancellations · Hansard source

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  People should not be missing hospital appointments because of cancelled planes in the aviation sector. Yes, I agree with the right hon. Member: it is a considered question, and when contracts come up for renewal we must consider them in the round to see how best they can serve the needs of the travelling public.

• 5 Nov 2024 · Flight Cancellations · Hansard source

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  I thank the hon. Gentleman for all he does in this space. I join him in encouraging the shadow Secretary of State to go to Northern Ireland, which is a fine country. The hon. Gentleman knows that I visit regularly, coming through Belfast and Derry/Londonderry. It is a great place to live, visit, work and do business. On the specific points about prices, I think there are 19 flights or more a week in summer from Derry/Londonderry, which is well connected. I suggest that the hon. Member gets involved with the airlines and the airport owners but, yes, we can look at that when we come up to review the public sector obligation.

• 5 Nov 2024 · Flight Cancellations · Hansard source

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  Public transport penetration within an hour of an airport is vital and is a key performance indicator for how airports can grow and serve people better. Better rail, better bus, better road links and better active travel to our airports are critical for this industry.

• 5 Nov 2024 · Flight Cancellations · Hansard source

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  I thank the hon. Gentleman for an opportunity to talk about these important issues. It is unusual that we are doing so in an urgent question, not in an Adjournment debate, which is the debate in which he normally intervenes.

• 5 Nov 2024 · Flight Cancellations · Hansard source

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  I remind the hon. Member that as a tax, air passenger duty is a matter for His Majesty’s Treasury. In the Budget we announced APD rates from 2026 to 2027, to account for the previous extraordinarily high inflation under the Conservative party, and to ensure that the aviation industry continues to contribute a fair share to the public finances.

• 5 Nov 2024 · Flight Cancellations · Hansard source

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  I say with all candour to the hon. Gentleman that I remember that during covid—I shadowed this brief at the time—there was no specific package for airlines, airports or airport handlers. That meant that we came out of covid in a much worse position than we would have if the Government had implemented their own Treasury’s proposals. We will take no lectures about our support for aviation. On his question about rights for passengers, we will look at strengthening those going forward. APD went up by less than inflation—it had not been increased in a number of years—but I refer him to the Treasury for more detailed answers on tax matters.

• 5 Nov 2024 · Flight Cancellations · Hansard source

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  Officials engage regularly with their counterparts across Europe and the European Union. The Government have committed to airspace modernisation, which will improve resilience. I look forward to support from Liberal Democrat Members in the near future as we progress towards modernising airspace right across our great nation and nations.

• 5 Nov 2024 · Flight Cancellations · Hansard source

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  The hon. and learned Member states that case, but there is a very open market in connectivity, with a number of airlines flying from Northern Ireland, and Belfast in particular, to the south-east and other UK destinations. I refer him to my previous answer: when public service obligations come to be reviewed we will look at the matter in the round. Rest assured that I am keen on connectivity between our great nations. Bill Presented Tobacco and Vapes Bill Presentation and First Reading (Standing Order No. 57 ) Secretary Wes Streeting, supported by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Secretary Yvette Cooper, Secretary Shabana Mahmood, Secretary Jonathan Reynolds, Secretary Hilary Benn, Secretary Ian Murray, Secretary Bridget Phillipson, Secretary Jo Stevens, Secretary Steve Reed, and Andrew Gwynne presented a Bill to make provision about the supply of tobacco, vapes and other products, including provision prohibiting the sale of tobacco to people born on or after 1 January 2009 and provision about the licensing of retail sales and the registration of retailers; to enable product and information requirements to be imposed in connection with tobacco, vapes and other products; to control the advertising and promotion of tobacco, vapes and other products; and to make provision about smoke-free places, vape-free places and heated tobacco-free places. Bill read the First time; to be read a Second time tomorrow, and to be printed (Bill 121) with explanatory notes (Bill 121-EN) .

• 5 Nov 2024 · Flight Cancellations · Hansard source

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  I thank the hon. Member for standing up for her local airport in Aberdeen. As someone who recently caught a connecting flight in Manchester from Newquay, going on to Aberdeen, I can say that Loganair provided an excellent service. It was a great honour to visit Aberdeen airport recently to see its helicopter base for North sea oil and its importance to the transition that we will begin with our clean energy mission. I suggest that the hon. Member takes that up with Andy, the chief executive there, and perhaps the new director of corporate affairs, Gavin Newlands, the former MP for Paisley.

• 5 Nov 2024 · Flight Cancellations · Hansard source

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  That is a good question, but I would do that automatically, and I extend that to the other parts of our great nation where the public service obligation applies. Let us not forget City of Derry airport, which is vital for the economy of the north-west in that fantastic part of our nation.

• 5 Nov 2024 · Flight Cancellations · Hansard source

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  We were struggling to get the question landed; we have been taxiing for a bit, and now we are ready for take-off. I do not want to pick on particular airlines, but I am discussing regional connectivity in the UK with airline CEOs, which I think is vital—that is the point the right hon. Member makes. I point out gently that Belfast International is a great airport to fly through, and it is well served, not just by a single operator. It has multiple operators serving multiple airports, particularly in the south-east.

• 30 Oct 2024 · Draft Merchant Shipping (General Lighthouse Authorities) (Increase of Borrowing Limit) Order 2024 · Hansard source

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  I beg to move, That the Committee has considered the draft Merchant Shipping (General Lighthouse Authorities) (Increase of Borrowing Limit) Order 2024. It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship today, Mrs Harris, especially as you are one of Swansea’s most famous daughters. As we are talking about lighthouses, however, I will mention Bonnie Tyler. She was also one of Swansea’s most famous daughters and she sang “Total Eclipse of the Heart”—that is the best reference I could come up with. This order will help to facilitate the replacement of the general lighthouse authorities’ ageing and increasingly obsolete fleet of vessels by increasing the amount of borrowing that they can access under the Merchant Shipping Act 1995. The GLAs are amazing organisations, and if any hon. Members has the chance to visit Trinity House lighthouses, the Northern Lighthouse Board or the Irish lighthouse board, which we also oversee, I suggest that they do. They do an amazing thing with great Department officials and officials working in the field in the most extreme circumstances. It is a great bit of my ministerial responsibilities. The GLAs provide aids to navigation, such as lighthouses and buoys; respond to new dangers to navigation safety, such as shipwrecks; and audit local aids to navigation provided by ports and harbours, and offshore structures such as wind farms, which will become increasingly important as we become a green energy superpower, as is one of our missions. The UK has some of the busiest and dangerous waters in the world, which is a potentially calamitous combination when one reflects on the importance of shipping to us as an island nation; 95% of all our import and export tonnage is transported by sea. The GLAs have been doing that work for hundreds of years. They are vital experts and they need modern, efficient equipment to ensure that they can continue to complete their work. They work their ships and other assets extremely hard—the average economic service life of their vessels is 25 years—so replacement on those timescales is business as usual for the GLAs. New ships are expensive, however, which brings me to the measure before the Committee. The GLAs are funded by light dues, a hypothecated tax paid by commercial and other shipping interests. They are not paid for by general taxation and make no call on the UK Exchequer for their day-to-day operational costs. The 1995 Act recognises that from time to time the GLAs need additional borrowing to be able to afford large capital purchases, but it also sets a cumulative limit of £100 million on the amount that all three GLAs could borrow. That figure was first included in legislation in 1988 and has not been changed since. It does not recognise inflationary or any other pressures. In today’s terms, that figure would be worth £270 million. It also does not recognise the changes in international financial reporting that have resulted in other costs, such as the fixed-price costs of contracts, being treated as borrowing in accounting terms. The figure also includes all borrowing regardless of source, commercial or Government. Although the GLAs have been able to keep comfortably within this limit until now, the need to purchase new vessels means that the current limit is now insufficient to meet forecast borrowing requirements. However, the 1995 Act places restrictions on how and when the power to increase the limit can be used. First, any raising of the limit requires advance approval from HM Treasury. My colleagues have recognised our case and provided that approval. Secondly, the limit can be increased only by an order—the statutory instrument under consideration today. Thirdly, the limit can be raised only by a maximum of £33 million at a time. To say “at a time” is somewhat ambiguous in this context, but following advice from the Joint Committee on Statutory Instruments, we have interpreted that to mean within a single order. Given those legal constraints, we need to raise the limit by a maximum of £33 million this year. Additional orders will be required to raise the limit further in future to ensure that the limit keeps step with the GLAs’ borrowing, and we will bring those orders forward for the approval of Parliament in due course. I stress that increasing the borrowing limit does not represent a commitment to new funding. Every vessel replacement project will be subject to the highest levels of scrutiny under the Department for Transport, Cabinet Office and HM Treasury spending controls and approval. However, the order is a vital prerequisite to enable the GLAs to fund their new vessels through borrowing when they need them. In summary, the work of the GLAs is vital to the UK and ships are critical to the delivery of the GLAs’ statutory duties. Their current fleet is reaching the end of its economic service life, so borrowing must be used to facilitate the purchase of replacements. We need to begin raising the limit now in line with their forecast borrowing requirements. I commend the order to the Committee.

• 30 Oct 2024 · Draft Merchant Shipping (General Lighthouse Authorities) (Increase of Borrowing Limit) Order 2024 · Hansard source

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  I am grateful to the hon. Member for her support with the order, and with the difficult issue of MV Ruby off the Kent coast over the last few weeks and months. We have come to a sensible solution with cross-party co-operation to secure that vessel and its cargo. To use an idiom, I have been absolutely blown away by the quality of our GLAs. I encourage hon. Members to engage with them—particularly hon. Members from coastal communities—to see the incredible quality, breadth and depth of the operation around lighthouses, buoys and aids to navigation. The hon. Member is exactly right that £100 million back then is worth £270 million today. This is a sensible measure that does not expose the Treasury or the Department, because these are effectively loans to be paid back. As the hon. Member said, we are an island nation, but we are often ignorant of our reliance on the seafarers and vessels that do so much to support our economy, and the work of the GLAs. I hope you will indulge me, Mrs Harris, in taking a moment to offer my thanks to the staff of those organisations, who go above and beyond every day. I have witnessed at first hand what is necessary in the harshest and most challenging environments—and with climate change, the number of days that the operatives can work at sea is reducing. The GLAs, together with the Maritime and Coastguard Agency and the marine accident investigation branch, are recognised around the world for their world-class standards and expertise. The order is an essential prerequisite to facilitate the purchase of new modern vessels and other vital equipment that the GLAs need to deliver their statutory duties and to enable them to continue, as they have done successfully for hundreds of years, to ensure the safety of all mariners in UK waters. Question put and agreed to.

• 29 Oct 2024 · Draft Vehicle Emissions Trading Schemes (Amendment) Order 2024 · Hansard source

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  I beg to move, That the Committee has considered the draft Vehicle Emissions Trading Schemes (Amendment) Order 2024. It is a great honour to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Vickers. It was the great Mancunian Daniel Adamson who in the 1860s envisaged a northern region from the Mersey estuary to the Humber estuary, hence the Manchester ship canal; I hope that one day a Government of some ilk will finish his work and join up the northern region properly from Merseyside to the Humber estuary. The Vehicle Emissions Trading Schemes Order 2023, which implemented the zero emission vehicle mandate, came into force in January this year. It sets targets for the registration of new zero emission cars and vans as a proportion of total new car and van sales. The draft order will amend the 2023 order for the purpose of facilitating the Northern Ireland Assembly’s decision that Northern Ireland should join the scheme, as well as making some technical updates. This amendment will bring Northern Ireland into alignment with the rest of the UK. It represents an important milestone on the pathway for the United Kingdom to achieve 100% zero emission new cars and vans by 2035 and net zero by 2050. When the 2023 order was made, the Northern Ireland Assembly was not sitting. Owing to the requirements of the primary powers used to create the mandate, Northern Ireland was unable to join at the scheme’s commencement; instead, it retained a scaled version of the assimilated European regulations that had previously applied in the UK following Brexit. I am pleased to report that following the Assembly’s return, it has chosen to support joining the ZEV mandate: it approved this legislation on 14 October, thereby approving Northern Ireland’s joining the mandate. I pay tribute to the Minister for Infrastructure, John O’Dowd, and to his officials in the Department for Infrastructure in the Northern Ireland Executive for their hard work in achieving this milestone. I also thank Ministers in the Scottish Government and the Welsh Government for their support. Once Northern Ireland has joined the ZEV mandate, the ZEV targets and carbon dioxide targets will be applied as a UK-wide average. That means that Northern Ireland’s vehicle market will not, by itself, be required to meet the headline ZEV target in 2025; instead, it will be a part of a UK-wide calculation. It also means that instead of there being two separate emissions regulations to engage with in the UK—one for Great Britain and one for Northern Ireland—there will now be a single framework for new cars and vans. The measure is accordingly supported by vehicle manufacturers, because it will reduce the administrative complexity of engaging with the UK market. It is also supported by the charging industry, as it will give investors the certainty that they need to invest in Northern Ireland as they have in the rest of the UK, where £6 billion of private investment has been committed to the end of the decade. The regulation, as it applies across the UK, is the single largest carbon-saving measure in government and is of singular importance if we are to meet our climate commitments. The draft order will bring the whole of the UK into alignment, not just in terms of regulation but in terms of ambition for zero emission mobility. It will give investors the confidence to invest in the transition across every part of our great nations and will ensure that nowhere is left behind as our technology and economy evolve. I am grateful to all Committee members for their attendance. I commend the draft order to the Committee.

• 29 Oct 2024 · Draft Vehicle Emissions Trading Schemes (Amendment) Order 2024 · Hansard source

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  I say to the shadow Minister that little has been learned since the defeat 16 weeks ago. The last Secretary of State indulged in a culture war around vehicles and 15-minute cities, spreading conspiracy theories at the Conservatives’ party conference. They messed about with vehicle emissions targets. They criticised the Mayor of London for the ultra low emission zone and for the attempts to produce clean air across our capital city. It was a complete culture war, and they lost out, because the British public were not fooled by the attempts to divide people, from car and van owners to pedestrians and cyclists, instead of improving the general environment in our city. On the shadow Minister’s substantive point about commitments, let me say that the Government are committed to phasing out new cars that rely solely on combustion engines by 2030. That means that pure petrol and diesel cars will be phased out by 2035, and all new cars and vans will need to be 100% zero emission. That is still our clear commitment. The shadow Minister said that we were tinkering around the edges of the ZEV mandate. The reality, which counters what he says, is that with the ZEV mandate, the UK mandate is growing faster than any comparable European market as we speak. The number of electric vehicles in the UK market has grown by 13.2% on 2023, which is faster growth than Germany, France, Italy and the EU as a whole. That is not to say that there are not challenges, but this Government will face the challenges through our mission for both growth and decarbonisation. I am proud that we were elected on that mission. The draft order is technical in nature, as the shadow Minister says, but it represents a shared ambition for the UK Government, the Scottish Government, the Welsh Government and now the Northern Ireland Executive to decarbonise our road transport as we make progress to net zero. By bringing Northern Ireland into the ZEV mandate, we can ensure that every part of this country benefits from zero emission mobility and that no community is left behind as we transition to a greener, cleaner future. I trust that the Committee has found this debate informative and that it will join me, alongside colleagues in the Northern Ireland Assembly, the Scottish Parliament and the Senedd, in supporting this legislation. Question put and agreed to.

• 10 Oct 2024 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  Currently, Luton airport is part of a development consent order, on which I cannot comment as a Minister, but I would remind people that it is always important to balance noise and local economic activity.

• 10 Oct 2024 · Cornwall and Isles of Scilly: Transport Needs · Hansard source

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  The Government are working apace to improve transport provision throughout the country. We have already announced five strategic transport priorities to improve local transport performance and increase usage. Officials will continue to meet local transport authorities across the south-west to discuss their aspirations.

• 10 Oct 2024 · Cornwall and Isles of Scilly: Transport Needs · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend is an incredible campaigner on transport matters, not just in her constituency but across the country. It is true that rural communities face different challenges, but the Government’s better buses Bill will enable local authorities to take back control of our buses and improve services, where they wish to do so.