Leeds Bradford Airport (LBA) has submitted yet another planning application to increase nighttime flying. They want the airport’s most frequently flown aircraft to be exempt from the cap on night flights. The Group for Action on Leeds Bradford Airport (GALBA) is opposing the application and thinks there’s a simple way for Leeds City Council to put an end to the merry-go-round of planning applications.
Long term readers will be familiar with the ongoing struggle between local campaigners, GALBA, and LBA. Since 2020, the airport has been looking for ways to increase its annual passenger numbers from 4.5 million to 7 million by 2030 and 10 million by 2045. And since 2020, GALBA has successfully stopped them.
LBA specifically wants to increase nighttime flying to maximise the number of return flights that can be made to the Med and back in the same day by airlines using LBA. Why? Because a plane on the ground isn’t making money.
GALBA wants to protect local people, air quality and the climate
GALBA strongly opposes expansion for three reasons: the health risks that additional night flights would pose to people who live (and try to sleep) under the flight path; the damage that would be done to local air quality from the rise in ultra-fine particles released by jet engines; and the increase in greenhouse gas emissions from extra flights, at a time when scientists warn that humanity is in the last chance saloon to prevent catastrophic climate breakdown.
As the Chair of GALBA, I feel the need to restate our aims because, over the years, these have been misunderstood – or even misrepresented – by some people. To be clear, GALBA does not say the airport should be closed down; nor do we say that people should never fly. We do say that LBA should not be allowed to expand, because the harms that would result far outweigh any benefit that might accrue.
Consistent with our stand on LBA, we also oppose all other proposed airport expansions, following the advice of the government’s expert advisers on the Climate Change Committee.
A public enquiry on night flights and its bizarre consequences
So what’s been happening? In July last year, LBA’s appeal against Leeds City Council’s rejection of the airport’s applications for Certificates of Lawful Existing Use or Development (CLEUDs) was heard at a public inquiry. LBA wanted to exempt its most commonly used planes from the cap on night flights forever. The planning inspector ruled against LBA’s two most important CLEUDs.
Although LBA’s applications were rejected, the bizarre consequence of the public inquiry decision left LBA flying hundreds of aircraft at night that are not lawfully allowed to fly at night at all. However, precisely because they’re not lawful, Leeds City Council hasn’t counted them towards the limit on the number of flights allowed at night and, because LBA has appealed against the planning inspector’s decision, the council hasn’t taken any action to stop them.
Now LBA has come back with yet another CLEUD application that seeks to achieve the same result that it wanted previously – exemption from the night flight rules for its most frequently flown aircraft. Yes, it does sound odd, but LBA can keep on applying even though they lost last time.
What’s even more frustrating is that a CLEUD is not decided by elected councillors on a planning committee but by an unelected council officer who can only consider the law and the figures. LBA say that if they can prove that the aircraft which are not allowed to fly at night at all have actually been flying at night for 10 continuous years, then those aircraft can fly as often as they want at night – forever – and no one can do anything about it.
A simple way to restore the council’s control
Obviously, in GALBA’s view that just looks like rewarding bad behaviour. We’ve submitted our legal and factual arguments to Leeds City Council and will wait for the decision. Our guess is that if LBA loses (again), the airport’s managers will appeal (again) and the whole merry-go-round will continue. But … there is something the council can do to restore control and stop LBA’s rule breaking.
There are operating conditions in LBA’s existing planning permission, which were set by, and can be used by, Leeds City Council. One of those conditions gives the council a power to approve (i.e. make lawful) nighttime flying by any aircraft that meet certain basic requirements. The aircraft that are the subject of LBA’s CLEUD application meet those requirements, so it is within the council’s power to approve them.
By doing that, the currently unlawful aircraft would become lawful and therefore have to be counted towards the cap on night flights. Moreover if – or more likely when – LBA next exceeds the night flight cap, Leeds City Council can take enforcement action to force the airport to stay within the limit on flight numbers set by the cap.
Legal support for GALBA’s position
Last year, GALBA asked the council to use such powers but we were told that it wasn’t possible without an application from LBA. Of course, LBA won’t do that because they want no restriction on their aircraft. To confirm whether waiting for an application from LBA was truly necessary, GALBA consulted a leading planning and environment barrister. This barrister, Estelle Dehon KC, said no – the Council can just do it. You can read her legal opinion on GALBA’s website. So, we asked the Council again to use their power and now we’ve been told that the current CLEUD application means they can’t. Strange, that’s not what they said the first time.
We really need to get to the bottom of this, so we’ve asked to meet soon with the council’s lead elected member for LBA, along with the lawyers advising both GALBA and the council. As the regulator for LBA, we want to work with Leeds City Council to resolve what is frankly an absurd situation.
Hopefully, a meeting of lawyers will lead to a meeting of minds and better protection for local people and the planet.
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