20 October 2006

Yvette Cooper MP
Minister of State
Department for Communities and Local Government
Eland House
Bressenden Place
London SW1E 5DU

Exemption of Small Airfields from Planning Controls

Please can you explain to me why Local Authorities, as Planning Authorities, have no control over the operation of small airfields?

Have you any plans to review this policy? If not, please may I formally request that you do so?

Old Sarum Airfield outside Salisbury is the oldest operational airfield in the United Kingdom. It was used intensively during World War II for the trial and testing of Spit Fires made in local factories. In 1982 the Ministry of Defence sold the freehold of the airfield with the covenant reserving the right for up to 150 military aircraft movements a year in perpetuity. The Local Authority agreed that the use of the airfield by light aircraft should continue. Unfortunately, they failed to specify any number of movements that might be imposed. In other words, they put no limit on future activity at the airfield.

Prompted by English Heritage, Salisbury District Council is currently consulting on a proposal to grant Conservation Area status to the airfield – which already contains a significant number of listed structures and buildings. English Heritage argues, rightly in my view, that protection should be afforded to historic landscapes as well as to individual buildings.

Conflict has arisen because the owner of the freehold, who has already developed substantial parts of the airfield for commercial use, fears that Conservation Area status would further restrict that companies activities – which in the past have included total development of the airfield for mixed housing and employment use. The owner of the airfield has decided not to renew the lease to the Old Sarum Flying Club – and that is currently a matter of litigation. However, there are rumours that he intends to replace the existing club with two new clubs, intensifying the amount of flying and introducing 24 hour flying instruction and 24 hour use of the site by investing in Civil Aviation Authority required runway lighting. You can imagine what passions this has aroused! I am not inviting you to get involved in this controversy.

However, I am asking you to consider ways in which Local Planning Authorities could have their powers extended to allow local democratic control and accountability of a facility which is causing increasing noise nuisance and inconvenience to thousands of local residents, as well as an increasing risk of accidents since all the aircraft flying in and out of the airfield must fly over dense housing in Salisbury city. Furthermore, the increase in noise levels for the villages under the flight path approaching the airfield have reached epidemic and unacceptable proportions.

It seems to me extraordinary that Local Authorities, as Planning Authorities, have power to control the movement and parking of motor vehicles, including loading and unloading and night time movements, but they have no control whatever on very intrusive light aircraft movements which lower the quality of life of thousands of local people and pose an increasingly unacceptable risk to their safety.

Similarly, the Regional Traffic Commissioners can control commercial vehicle operation, including parking, but have no say when it comes to aircraft.

I believe this in an anomalous situation which needs to be addressed. I would be grateful for your advice.