Member

Then there is the whole question of the terms on which a Secretary of State would intervene. These slots are very valuable and they are on the balance sheet of airlines, so this is not an easy thing to discuss. As the noble Baroness, Lady Foster, often points out, we are in an international context. When the Private Member’s Bill was brought forward, the noble Lord, Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, was the Minister. He argued that this was, in effect, a European competence, and he was able to dodge the column on that.