Source: All England Reporter
Publisher Citation: [2008] All ER (D) 131 (Jun)
Neutral Citation: [2008] EWHC 1292 (Admin)
Court: Queen's Bench Division, Administrative Court
Judge:

Sullivan J
Representation David Smith (instructed by Richard Buxton) for the claimant.
  John Howell QC, Martin Chamberlain and Sarah Love (instructed by the Treasury Solicitor) for the Secretary of State.
Judgment Dates: 23 May 2008

Catchwords

Air traffic - Aircraft - Night flight restrictions - Noise nuisance - Department of Transport issuing White Paper setting out strategic framework for development of airport capacity - Government indicating intention to 'bear down on' night noise of aircrafts - Secretary of State holding two-stage consultation process with view to developing new night flight restrictions regime - New regime announced setting environmental and noise abatement objectives and proposing noise insulation scheme to be implemented with immediate effect - Whether new regime complying with framework set out in White Paper.

The Case

In the instant case, the Secretary of State's announcement in June 2006 of 'Night Flying Restrictions at Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted' which were to apply from October 2006 to October 2012, had not been in breach of a statement concerning 'noise nuisance' in a White Paper, entitled 'The Future of Air Transport', published three years earlier. There was nothing in the claimant's contention, namely that the new regime did not 'bear down on noise' but perpetuated it, as the policy in question had not committed the government to 'doing' anything, rather it had left open all possible outcomes. Further, the issue of night noise had been considered in the consultation process which had preceded the announcement; if the claimants had any objections, they should have lodged them there and then.

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