Member

I raised this in the House many years ago, in two Private Members’ Bills, both of which passed, I have to say, but suffered under the watchful gaze of a certain Member in the other place who had a penchant for dealing with Private Members’ Bills in a very cruel fashion. Some of the powers that the noble Lord, Lord Grayling, mentioned, seem huge, but I would like the Minister to confirm that, if such a circumstance arose where an operator that had access to key slots at a hub airport chose to replace those routes with alternative—say, international—routes, regional airports would not be disadvantaged to the point that there would be significant economic or social damage. In those circumstances, could the Secretary of State intervene?