13:23 Huw Merriman (Bexhill and Battle) (Con)

The hon. Gentleman is speaking about the intervention and support required from the Government. A few moments ago we heard about the report from Climate Assembly UK that was launched today, which includes bold recommendations about the future of aviation and our route to net zero 2050. Does he agree that taxpayer support for the sector should be conditional on action both to protect workers and to cut emissions, as we transition to a more sustainable future for the aviation sector?

I thank my predecessor for all the amazing work she did on the Transport Committee, as well as today with the climate change report. She is absolutely right. When the Government bring out their sector renewal programme for aviation—and I hope we will hear more from the Minister on that—I hope to see incentives for greening aviation. That must be the future.

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13:35 Abena Oppong-Asare (Labour)

This is why I am calling on the Government to work with businesses to produce a clear commitment to tackling climate change and investing to make the use of cleaner fuels and other low or zero-emission technologies viable options for businesses. If the Government truly want us to be the world leader, we must start acting like one. Direct emissions from aviation account for 2% of global greenhouse gas emissions. The threat to our planet, our country and our constituencies from climate change is ever growing.

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13:51 Chris Grayling (Epsom and Ewell) (Con)

My final point is that we absolutely have to rebuild the sector, get these businesses going again and get people flying again, but there is also a duty on the industry and all of us to ensure that this is, as far as is possible, a green recovery. There is no simple way of solving the environmental impact of the aviation sector. It cannot suddenly become net zero or green overnight, but it has to take steps in the right direction, whether through the electrification of airports, the reduction of fuel consumption of planes or other methods that can make the industry less environmentally impactful. My message to the industry and to the Government is that they should work together to ensure that the industry really is on the mend and that we get people flying again, but should do so in the most environmentally sustainable way possible. This is a crucial industry, and it must get back to something like normal, but it needs to do so in a way that is consistent with all our futures.

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14:04 Paul Howell (Sedgefield) (Con)

In getting aviation back on its feet, we have the opportunity to redefine the aviation sector. After the reset driven by covid-19, we can move to a more sustainable and greener future through a balanced and considered approach. Climate Assembly UK, which today published its report “The path to net zero”, supports the need for an ongoing and sustainable aviation industry and makes recommendations that include the need to engage the population in making necessary changes and promoting UK travel.

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14:09 Henry Smith (Crawley) (Con)

Finally, we need a sustainable regrowth of our aviation industry. In February, the UK airline industry committed to net zero carbon by 2050. We need investment—some £500 million of matched investment—from the Government with industry to develop sustainable aviation fuels. That is the way we will recover, for our whole country.

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14:41 Steve Brine (Winchester) (Con)

Secondly, I wholeheartedly welcome the Government’s recent commitment to establishing a Jet Zero Council with the goal of making net zero carbon emissions a reality for flights in the future. We wrote to the Secretary of State in February this year with a decarbonisation roadmap from the organisation Sustainable Aviation—a detailed plan to achieve zero carbon by 2050 by investing in cleaner aircraft, engine technology, smarter flight operations, sustainable aviation fuels and high-quality carbon offsets. Post covid, all those actions remain essential if we are to achieve that ambition.

British Airways has many questions to answer. I know that BA slots at Heathrow are not in the Government’s gift, but I look forward to hearing the Minister’s response to the debate. Jet zero is something that this Government can be proud of, and I look forward to seeing it develop in the months and years ahead. Air travel and meeting our climate objectives and climate commitments are not incompatible, and we should not fall into the silly trap of seeing them as either/or. Finally, I will work with Southampton airport, but it needs to work with me.

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