Councils call for abolition of the Civil Aviation Authority

3:23pm Tuesday 9th March 2010

By Paul Teed

A coalition of councils opposed to Heathrow expansion has called for the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) to be abolished after claiming it has failed to hold the Department for Transport (DfT) to account.

The 2M Group - which includes Hounslow and Richmond councils - said the Government should scrap the CAA and set up a new independent watchdog.

The alliance, representing a population of five million residents, feared that under current plans the CAA could be given the key role in deciding whether the environmental conditions for a third runway at Heathrow had been met.

It said the aviation regulator had not been critical enough of the potential noise impacts, and it was too unaccountable to be responsible for deciding future airspace changes affecting millions of people.

The councils spoke out in response to a DfT consultation on the future of the CAA.

Councillor Peter Thompson, leader of Hounslow Council, and Councillor Serge Lourie, leader of Richmond Council, said in a statement on behalf of 2M: “This was meant to be a root and branch review but all we’re being offered is the same cosy arrangement between the DfT, CAA and the industry that has existed for years.

“Our experience as local authorities over the last 20 years concerned with the environmental impact of Heathrow’s operations is that no one agency is holding either the DfT or the aviation industry to account.

“With the Government pushing for expansion at Heathrow we needed a strong CAA to tell ministers that the forecast on noises and emissions simply did not add up.

“The answer now is to set up a truly independent body which can act as a champion for consumer and environmental interests alongside its traditional safety and licensing roles.”

The 2M Group also said it was concerned there was currently no right of appeal against CAA decisions.

A spokesman for the CAA said it “doesn’t have the remit or powers” to challenge ministers over aircraft noise and emissions.

He said: “We are not the agency, and never have been, responsible for the environmental lead on aviation.

“What they think we should have done we’ve never been able to legally, that’s the Government’s responsibility what they are asking for.”

The DfT’s consultation on proposals to update the regulatory framework is available at dft.gov.uk/consultations/open/regulatingairtransport/