UK Minister tells aviation bosses ‘we will not agree’

UK Transport Secretary, Philip Hammond, announced at a British Air Transport Association meeting the aviation industry should back the government's new strategy for aviation (UK-Airport-News, 28-Jan-2011). Mr Hammond acknowledged that he and airline CEOs will inevitably disagree on several key issues and stated he appreciates the "forthrightness of the views" of some in the industry. Mr Hammond praised the industry as "innovative, flexible and responsive, used to reacting in real time to a rapidly changing environment." While noting the importance of the industry to the UK economy, he said the government is also aware of the "environmental cost" imposed by it. He said the government must focus on how aviation can grow "within the environmental constraints, both local and global, that we must impose".