Proposed Airport Redevelopment: review – comments [P.71/2020 Com.]

STATES OF JERSEY

PROPOSED AIRPORT REDEVELOPMENT: REVIEW – COMMENTS

Presented to the States on 30th June 2020 by the Minister for Treasury and Resources

STATES GREFFE

2020  P.71 Com.

COMMENTS

" Deputy R. Labey of St. Helier 's Proposition (P.71/2020) asks the Assembly –

1. to request  the  Minister  for  Treasury  and  Resources,  as  Shareholder Representative, to request Ports of Jersey to undertake and provide to the States Assembly a review of the scale, detail and viability of the £42 million scheme for  the  redevelopment  of  Jersey Airport  in  light  of  the  changed  aviation landscape caused by the worldwide Coronavirus pandemic;
2. to  request  the  Minister  for  Treasury  and  Resources,  as  Shareholder Representative, to seek commitments from Ports of Jersey that no demolition of the original 1937 Terminal takes place until the outcome of such a review has been considered by the States Assembly; and that consideration will be given to the retention and incorporation of the 1937 building as part of any redevelopment;
3. to request the Minister for the Environment to instigate a review of the grant of a permit to demolish the 1937 Terminal."

The Minister for Treasury and Resources opposes this Proposition.

"(a)  to request the Minister for Treasury and Resources, as Shareholder

Representative, to request Ports of Jersey to undertake and provide to the States Assembly a review of the scale, detail and viability of the £42 million scheme for the redevelopment of Jersey Airport in light of the changed aviation landscape caused by the worldwide Coronavirus pandemic;"

Notwithstanding the current change to the economic landscape, the aim of the current development plans are to future proof' the Airport for many years to come. It is an investment which should be assessed against the next 30 years rather than the short-term experience of a reduced number of flights.

Industry forecasts show the aviation industry growing back to close to pre-Covid levels over the next 18-24 months. A review of the proposed plans by international aviation specialists concluded that the plans for the new integrated terminal were the most effective way of meeting future needs of the Island and airlines.

The redevelopment of the terminal is being undertaken on essential safety grounds as there is a need for Jersey Airport to comply with the requirements of the aerodrome license, as set out within the Air Navigation (Jersey) Law 2014, and the Civil Aviation Authority regulations.

The Director of Civil Aviation ("DCA") has overall responsibility to ensure the safety of civil aviation in Jersey and its airspace. The DCA has provided clear instruction that the 1937 Building represents a hazardous obstacle which infringes the 1:7 Transitional Surface and prevents the proper separation of the Alpha taxiway from the runway.

The rationale for the decision to permit the demolition to proceed is clearly laid out in MD-PE-2014-0024. Under the Air and Sea Ports (Incorporation) (Jersey) Law 2015, the primary object of Ports of Jersey Limited is "to provide or ensure the provision of safe, secure and efficient port operations for Jersey, whether by itself or by any other person acting as its subsidiary, agent, employee or sub-contractor." To allow the 1937 Building to remain in its current position directly contradicts this important legal responsibility.

The redevelopment of Jersey Airport is required to ensure the safe, secure and regulatory compliant operation of Jersey Airport. Ports of Jersey has confirmed that it considers the project to be financially viable.

Accordingly,  the  changed  aviation  landscape,  because  of  COVID-19,  is  not  an appropriate rationale for a review of the scale, detail and viability of the current scheme. It follows that COM cannot support this part of the proposition.

"(b)  to request the Minister for Treasury and Resources, as Shareholder

Representative, to seek commitments from Ports of Jersey that no demolition of the original 1937 Terminal takes place until the outcome of such a review has been considered by the States Assembly; and that consideration will be given to the retention and incorporation of the 1937 building as part of any redevelopment;"

On the basis that the review requested in part (a) is not supported, the Minister does not believe  there  is  a  requirement  for  her  to  seek  such  a  commitment  from  the Ports of Jersey. However, the Assistant Minister for Treasury and Resources has written to the Chief Executive of Ports of Jersey requesting that any further work on the 1937 Building be halted until the outcome of the States debate on this proposition is known and the Minister for the Environment's consultation with the DCA is completed. The Chief Executive has confirmed that no further work will take place at this time.

"(c)  to request the Minister for the Environment to instigate a review of the

grant of a permit to demolish the 1937 Terminal."

The aviation sector is one of the most heavily regulated industries in the world.

Civil  Aviation  in  Jersey  is  regulated  by  the  Office  of  the  DCA,  created  by  the Civil Aviation (Jersey) Law 2008. The DCA has overall responsibility to ensure the safety of civil aviation in Jersey and its airspace. The DCA is committed to meet the Annexes  of  the  Chicago  Convention  1944  as  set  by  the  International  Civil Aviation Organisation ("ICAO"), the arm responsible for international air transport to ensure safety worldwide, which mandates that each of its 191- member States ensure separation  of  the  regulator  and  the  service  provider,  which  for  Jersey  is  the Ports of Jersey.

The DCA coordinates the regulatory oversight of civil aviation in Jersey with its sister agencies, the Civil Aviation Authority ("CAA") in the UK and the European Aviation Safety Agency ("EASA").

The determinations of the DCA are based on a detailed understanding of all aspects of UK and International regulations and how they should be applied at Jersey Airport.

Regular safety and security compliance audits are undertaken on behalf of the DCA by the CAA.

The  DCA  has  provided  written  instruction  on  three  separate  occasions  that  the 1937 Building must be removed to ensure the safe operation of Jersey Airport under Civil Aviation Publication 168 Licensing of Aerodromes'.

• In 2010, the DCA instructed that the 1937 Building, along with several other obstacles, needed to be removed. A programme of removing and repositioning obstacles has since taken place, commencing with the Aeroclub, the roundabout and roadway, in order to achieve compliance to the regulatory requirement for runway to taxiway separation. The 1937 Building and the old aviation hangar (Hangar 4) are the only remaining obstacles, both incorporated into the Airport redevelopment project

• In  2018,  the  DCA  provided  further  instruction  regarding  the  removal  of  the 1937 Building –

• "A previous DCA made it perfectly clear in his letter in 2010 and nothing has changed since then with regards to the safety effects on the aerodrome by this building."

• The Minister for the Environment recently wrote to the DCA asking if the Report written by ASAP commissioned by Save Jersey's Heritage altered in any way the advice  provided  by  the  DCA  and  used  in  the  determination  of  the  Planning Application. The DCA responded on the 19th June 2020 (attached at the Appendix) concluding that –

• if  the  obstacle  remains,  safety  will  continue  and  increasingly  be compromised in the years ahead'.

Planning permission for the demolition of the 1937 Building was granted in 2014. The internal  demolition  of  the  1937  Building  commenced  in  early  2018  and confirmation was provided by the Planning Department in October 2018 that the planning  consent  to  demolish  the  building  had  been  lawfully  activated,  further confirmed in writing by the Planning Department in March 2019 –

"I confirm that the department is satisfied that all of the relevant planning conditions  forming  part  of  the  above-referenced  application  have  been satisfactorily discharged. I also confirm that the development work which has been undertaken on site so far is in accordance with the approved plans and other documents; accordingly, we are content that the application has been lawfully implemented".

Ports of Jersey has committed £6.6 million in the terminal redevelopment project to date.

Based  on  the  repeated  clear  direction  of  the  DCA,  the  regulator  with  overall responsibility for the safety of civil aviation in Jersey, including following review of the recent ASAP report, the request to instigate a review of the grant of a permit to demolish the 1937 Building is also not supported.

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Statement under Standing Order 37A [Presentation of comment relating to a proposition]

These comments were submitted to the States Greffe after the noon deadline as set out in Standing Order 37A, owing to the debate being earlier than anticipated and lack of time to discuss with Council of Minister's colleagues.

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