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Question
The hon. Gentleman questions whether it is appropriate for Heathrow airport's power supply structure to rely on a single electrical substation and asks the Secretary of State to provide assurance that she will keep the House informed about the findings from the Kelly review.
Minister reply
I assure the hon. Gentleman I am willing to facilitate any meetings he wishes to have with my officials to better understand this serious issue, and will continue engagement with Heathrow officials.
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Question
What are the implications of this event on Heathrow’s expansion plans and grid capacity? Should UK airports increase their back-up power systems to prevent future incidents?
Minister reply
The question of Heathrow expansion is separate from this rare incident. The Government has invited Heathrow to bring forward proposals for a third runway, but we will review the ANPS after these plans are submitted. Regarding back-up capacity, Heathrow’s systems operated as expected during the incident. We will closely examine the reviews and ensure passengers affected by disruptions are aware of their rights.
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Question
How will the site be secured for future risks, including potential attacks?
Minister reply
My right hon. Friend raises a valid point. I will ensure we provide detailed information on security measures after reviewing the relevant reports.
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Question
Should the Government introduce anti-price-gouging legislation to protect consumers from inflated prices during disruptions?
Minister reply
It would not be right for businesses to capitalise on this disruption. I expect organisations to support travellers affected by it.
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Question
Will there be a co-ordinated response if systematic risks are identified affecting other major airports, and will Members be informed of issues at regional/local airports?
Minister reply
I am happy to give my hon. Friend that assurance.
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Question
Has the Secretary made Heathrow officials aware of the need for actionable contingency plans during crises, and how have they responded?
Minister reply
Heathrow’s chief executive is fully aware of the incident's impact. While it was unprecedented, day-to-day operations continue smoothly. We will interrogate causes and learn lessons to maintain trust in Heathrow.
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Question
How will clean power plans account for greater resilience and back-up needed after the incident at Heathrow?
Minister reply
Resilience remains key as we transition to clean power. I am happy to continue discussions with colleagues in the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero to ensure this is maintained.
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Question
Will our drive towards green energy and net zero ever affect the sustainability and safety of vital transport systems?
Minister reply
Resilience remains a key factor in delivering our power network. Nothing changes as we move to clean power.
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Question
When the Secretary of State receives her reviews, will she look into what preparedness there was at Heathrow for dealing with possible outages?
Minister reply
I think that the Kelly review will be looking at this. My hon. Friend makes a fair point about preparedness as well as resilience, which I will discuss with those at Heathrow in the future.
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Question
Does the Secretary of State agree that this incident shows how important standards for resilience would be?
Minister reply
I think they are already doing that, because the review of resilience announced by the Chancellor in July is looking at the subject in the context of our critical national infrastructure.
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Question
Will my right hon. Friend look into the risks and consequences of a 50% expansion of Heathrow?
Minister reply
I can assure my hon. Friend that before making any decisions about the expansion of Heathrow, we will ensure that any proposals comply with all our legislative requirements.
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Question
Will the Secretary of State organise a meeting to discuss findings and link them with any proposal for a new substation in his constituency?
Minister reply
The relevant Energy Minister, my hon. Friend the Member for Rutherglen, would be happy to have such a meeting.
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Question
Will she liaise with the local business community and local authorities in the Thames valley to ensure they are kept abreast of the work carried out in the reviews?
Minister reply
My hon. Friend has made a fair point, and I am happy to give him that undertaking.
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Question
Surely what this incident shows us is that we need a better Heathrow, not a bigger one?
Minister reply
Consideration of the resilience of the infrastructure will be part of our environmental obligations on things such as carbon, air pollution and noise.
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Question
Does my right hon. Friend agree that this event should be a wake-up call regarding the resilience of our national infrastructure?
Minister reply
This was an unprecedented event and Heathrow stood up its resilience plans swiftly, ensuring planes were landing at the airport within 18 hours.
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Question
Will she commit to urgently reviewing the DFT’s response to this major incident?
Minister reply
I can assure the hon. Gentleman that I was updated throughout the weekend by my officials on what was happening at the airport, and I am happy to write to him about the wider point he raises.
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Question
Can she assure us that the review and lessons learned will be shared with other airports?
Minister reply
I am very happy to give my hon. Friend that commitment.
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Question
Will she do an assessment of our remaining airports to ensure they also have multiple supply points for electricity?
Minister reply
There were multiple power supply points to the airport, but Heathrow decided to reconfigure them in a way that prioritised passenger safety.
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Question
Can she assure me not only that a proper investigation is taking place, but that we will learn the lessons?
Minister reply
I recognise that Heathrow provides important connectivity for our regional airports and I can assure her that I will keep the House updated once both the internal review and NESO’s report have been published.
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Question
One of the consequences of that is the wholesale cancellation of flights between Heathrow and Scotland, which I have raised previously in this Chamber. When Ruth Kelly does her report on Heathrow’s resilience, will she look at its wider resilience and its ability to cope with weather-related or other technical issues, so that they do not lead to the wholesale cancellation of flights between Scotland and London?
Minister reply
I am not writing the terms of reference for the Kelly review, because it has been commissioned by Heathrow airport itself. The aviation Minister, my hon. Friend the Member for Wythenshawe and Sale East (Mike Kane), tells me that the right hon. Gentleman has written to him about this issue, and he is due to come back to him on it.
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Question
I thank the Secretary of State for her statement, and I add to the comments made by other Members by thanking those who dealt with this terrible incident at the time. It obviously had a huge impact on passengers, including residents in Harlow looking to get to the US. What reassurance can she give passengers that this was due to an unprecedented power outage? Does this add to the case for other airports such as Stansted, which employs some of my constituents, having greater resilience, greater capacity and, potentially, even transatlantic flights?
Minister reply
I can assure him that when we get the reviews back, we will look at their implications for other airports, including Stansted, which provides employment for a number of his constituents.
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Question
The fire and Heathrow closure will have impacted not only on travellers and on goods and services, but on the employees and contractors who work at Heathrow. Could the Secretary of State reassure me and those workers that she will urge all employers at Heathrow to ensure that staff who were due to work but were unable to do so, through no fault of their own, will be paid for that day?
Minister reply
I am grateful for that question. I must admit that it is not a subject I have, to date, discussed with the chief executive of Heathrow, but I am happy to follow it up for the hon. Gentleman and come back to him.
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Question
I thank the Secretary of State for all her hard work on this matter over the weekend. Can she reassure my constituents that our energy resilience remains high, and that the holidays they have saved long and hard for will not be disrupted by similar incidents at regional airports up and down the country? Will she also look into the particular impact that such outages have on disabled passengers?
Minister reply
I would like to reassure her and her constituents that I am confident that our airports and critical national infrastructure are resilient. I recognise that significant disruption was caused on this occasion.
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Question
It is, first, really important to emphasise that energy infrastructure is generally safe. However, the example on Friday indicated that things can go wrong. What is the Secretary of State, alongside her Government colleagues, doing to address over-industrialisation in certain areas? In Kintore and Leylodge in my constituency, we have a 275 kV substation next to a 400 kV substation, with a 3 GW hydrogen plant and nine battery storage sites in the planning. Together, there is a huge risk, if we consider that a fire was able to start on Friday.
Minister reply
All these risks are considered in the round, but if the hon. Lady wants to write to an appropriate Minister in another Department and copy me in, I would be happy to follow up on those discussions.
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Question
Following the incident at Heathrow, will the Secretary of State commit to investing in regional airports, such as Blackpool airport, to diversify our air travel options and support local economies such as mine in Blackpool South, and therefore reduce our reliance on major hubs?
Minister reply
If my hon. Friend would like to write to me, I will ensure I come back to him.
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Question
The Secretary of State has, perfectly fairly, said that some of the specific learning about the incident will have to wait until we know more, but she also said that she has been told that, as a matter of design, the back-up power arrangements for Heathrow were not intended to cover all airport operations until, as we know, a significant reconfiguration took place over a matter of hours. Will she assure that she can and will begin the work of considering whether that is the right position, not just for Heathrow but for other airports?
Minister reply
Heathrow, as a private company, is responsible for developing its own resilience plans. This is an issue that will be considered properly by the Kelly review.
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Question
I thank the Secretary of State for her statement and associate myself with the comments of gratitude towards the firefighters and airport staff who responded to the incident. Will my right hon. Friend confirm that passengers have sufficient rights to receive support and compensation when these kinds of external events disrupt their plans?
Minister reply
Airlines are responsible for providing passengers with a refund within seven days, or to be re-routed to their destination under the same conditions, with required suitable accommodation and food.
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Question
In any modern economy, it is clear that the resilience of critical national infrastructure faces many risks and threats, and that resilience goes hand in hand with our national security. Does the Secretary of State agree that the incident and other risks we face demonstrate that the role of the Prime Minister’s national security adviser should be bolstered to more prominently cover national security and critical infrastructure resilience?
Minister reply
I assure the hon. Gentleman that the Government will do everything in their power to learn the lessons from this incident and ensure that our critical national infrastructure is protected and resilient as we move forward.
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Question
The Secretary of State said in her statement that the review by the National Energy System Operator will seek to learn wider lessons for energy resilience and critical national infrastructure. Will that review include the infrastructure in Northern Ireland, specifically Belfast international airport in my constituency and Belfast City airport?
Minister reply
My understanding is that the grid is separate in Northern Ireland. I will take away the hon. Gentleman’s question and consider with colleagues the appropriate geographical scope of the NESO review.