Lords Grand Committee — sitting of 16 June 2026: transcript & video

03:30 - 07:31

Speaker 1

If that is in fact their purpose, I don't see that they can object to a clause that says as much on the face of the bill, which is what the effect of my amendment number one is. It would insert a purpose clause stating that the act should promote the international competitiveness of the UK aviation sector, support economic growth, and protect the rights and interests of consumers. They're not in conflict with each other, and they should not be treated as if they are. A strong aviation sector needs passenger rights, needs passengers to have confidence in their rights, but it also needs airlines, airports, and investors to have confidence that regulation will be proportionate, predictable, and pro-growth. Amendment 23 is intended to make sure that when the Secretary of State makes regulations under clause one, the impact on growth is considered at the start rather than as an afterthought.

In other words, amendment one applies to the whole bill, and amendment 23 seeks to apply the same effect to clause one, which relates in particular to consumer rights. So it's obviously vital that consumers are properly protected, but they should be protected in a way that supports demand for aviation, encourages investment, and allows aviation businesses to grow. The government has repeatedly said that economic growth is its number one priority. Now, I fully realize that depending on the day of the week, there'll be a different number one priority, but at various stages, growth has occupied that slot. So it should be prepared to apply that test to the regulations made under this bill.

My Lords, it's simply asking the minister to take seriously the economic consequences of the powers they're seeking. If I turn to amendment 24, which concerns alignment with EU law and international standards. I was fairly appalled when I read the very large impact assessment document, final stage impact assessment document. But you only have to get to page three before it's already talking about aligning with European Union legislation. We know that the European Union at the moment is in the midst, or maybe even now approaching the end, of a very contested argument about changes to consumer protection rights.

So we can take it, as I think with some degree of certainty, that there will be changes to consumer protection, aviation consumer protection rights in the European Union as a result of those discussions. And already it seems the department is thinking not what is best for Britain, what is best for the growth of the aviation sector, what is best for passengers here. They're simply thinking the way they've thought for 47 years: what are we going to do to align with the European Union? And so to prevent that from being the lodestar of how regulation develops in the future, amendment 24 puts in certain tripwires in any case where the intention is to align with European Union regulations. What I object to is the assumption that the United Kingdom's ambition should be merely to mirror what the European Union does next.

The rest of the transcript is for Pro customers

Unlock the full transcript, chat, and every analysis feature with Polyfact Pro.

The video itself stays free to watch, in full, no account needed.