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Select committee: Transport Committee

The impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the aviation sector: follow-up

Closed Opened 26 Feb 2021 Closed 14 Nov 2022 3 recommendations

Transport Committee Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗

Where it stands

The inquiry is closed, opened 26 February 2021.

The committee has published 1 report, most recently Fifth Report: The impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the aviation sector: Interim report on 11 March 2021.

The government's response

Published 13 May 2021. The deadline was 11 May 2021.

Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.

The government notes the Committee's recommendations on restarting international travel and the recovery plan, partially agrees with two, and points to the Global Travel Taskforce report and a 'traffic light' system as its response.

  • On the Committee's call to maintain the 17 May restart, the government "notes this recommendation". It says measures limiting outbound travel "will be removed by 17 May at the earliest", with a "traffic light" country system.
  • On the road map and destination standards, it "partially agrees". It says wider vaccine and testing standards "must be agreed internationally", and sets three review checkpoints, the first "no later than 28 June 2021".
  • On quarantine, it says all measures "will be reviewed, as appropriate" at the three checkpoints, rather than giving a phase-out timetable.
  • On the recovery plan, the government "notes" the recommendation, says a strategic framework will be published "later this year", and is "willing to provide an update" to the Committee in early autumn.

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Recommendations and conclusions

All 3 recommendations and conclusions

Reports

All reports

Evidence

  • 1 oral evidence sessionLatest 3 March 2021
  • 6 witnesses
All evidence

Recent activity

Recommendations and conclusions 3 shown

Recommendation 2

Recommendation · Fifth Report: The impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the aviation sector: Interim report · Addressed to Department for Transport

Recommended (the committee's words)
The aviation industry thrives on certainty. In order to return passenger aircraft to the skies and to connect the UK to the world, a road map to restart international travel is urgently needed. The Department has not yet specified the standards that destination countries must meet on vaccine and testing capabilities in order to reopen for travel with the UK. In addition, it has not clarified whether such criteria will be flexible if the risk of transmission of new variants between vaccinated individuals is found to be minimal.

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Recommendation 3

Recommendation · Fifth Report: The impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the aviation sector: Interim report · Addressed to Department for Transport

Recommended (the committee's words)
The Government must commit to publishing the Global Travel Taskforce report on 12 April to give consumers and industry the certainty that they need to plan for a summer 2021 restart for international travel. The publication of the road map should be accompanied by a statement to the House of Commons setting out next steps. The Global Travel Taskforce report must clarify: • The criteria that destination countries must meet on vaccine and testing capabilities in order to reopen for travel with the UK, as well as the requirements that passengers will need to fulfil in order to travel abroad, including any relating to digital health certification; • when and how the current quarantine schemes will be phased out; and • how the Government plans to support industry should variants or high levels of Covid-19 transmission affect the reopening schedule.

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Recommendation 4

Recommendation · Fifth Report: The impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the aviation sector: Interim report · Addressed to Department for Transport

Recommended (the committee's words)
It is disappointing that the timetable on the recovery plan for the aviation sector has slipped. The focus on the Global Travel Taskforce report for travel in summer 2021 should be the first priority. That said, the recovery plan should not slip further, and we will seek an update from the Government on progress in early autumn.

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Reports

1 report

Oral evidence sessions

1 session

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Date Session and witnesses Source
3 Mar 2021
Oral evidence session
Karen Dee · Airport Operators Association, Michael O'Leary · Ryanair, Richard Moriarty · Civil Aviation Authority, Robert Courts MP · Department for Transport, Simon Calder · The Independent (newspaper), Tim Hawkins · Manchester Airports Group 		View ↗

Who gave evidence

6 witnesses

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WitnessOrganisationSessions
Karen Dee · Chief Executive Airport Operators Association 1
Michael O'Leary · Group Chief Executive Officer Ryanair 1
Richard Moriarty · Chief Executive Civil Aviation Authority 1
Robert Courts MP · Minister for Aviation, Maritime and Security Department for Transport 1
Simon Calder · Senior Travel Editor The Independent (newspaper) 1
Tim Hawkins · Chief of Staff Manchester Airports Group 1