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Good evening, everyone.

I鈥檝e had the pleasure of meeting some of you over the last couple of weeks individually.聽But I will be honest with you, not only did I not expect to find myself in this job, I also didn鈥檛 envisage spending quite so much time talking about airports.

But I am glad I have because aviation not only underpins the growth we want, but our approach to it says a lot about the country we want to be.

Now some might say the current debate about airport expansion highlights a fundamental tension between growing the economy, whilst protecting the environment.聽

I say: we must do both.聽

We could put our head in the sand and pretend that people don鈥檛 want to fly. Pretend that families aren鈥檛 dispersed across the globe.聽That they don鈥檛 work hard for, and enjoy, their summer holidays.聽We could pretend that businesses don鈥檛 have international clients and colleagues and that air freight isn鈥檛 a significant part of the UK鈥檚 trade by value.聽We could聽pretend that aviation isn鈥檛 critical to the economy of an island nation. But we would be knowingly detaching ourselves from reality.

We live in an increasingly interconnected world. Whilst technology has in some respects brought us all so much聽closer together, there are some things that smartphones, streaming or Zoom just can鈥檛 replicate.聽So as a government, we have a choice 鈥� either engage with the world as we find it, or we fail. We know demand for air travel is only going in one direction. Record-breaking stats from the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) last week confirm passenger levels were 7% higher in 2024 than the previous year.聽Demand is up 鈥� and if we don鈥檛 meet it, then we will lose out to our European competitors and risk being on the wrong side of public aspirations. 聽

So the Chancellor has been clear: we will do all we can to support the sector and take the brakes off growth.聽It鈥檚 why we鈥檝e approved London City Airport鈥檚 plans to expand to 9 million passengers per year by 2031 and it鈥檚 why we welcomed Stansted鈥檚 additional 拢1.1 billion investment to extend its terminal.聽But there remain capacity problems 鈥� particularly at airports in the southeast.

So, as you know, planning applications for Gatwick and Luton are literally on my desk. And聽as you might have picked up, the government has invited proposals for a third runway at Heathrow to be brought forward by the summer. Once received, we will move at speed to review the Airports National Policy Statement.聽But let me be clear 鈥� this is in no way a blank cheque.聽My job as decision maker on all of these schemes will be to strike a balance 鈥� between expansion鈥檚 potential benefits of jobs, trade and tourism, with tough questions on:

• whether this is compatible with our climate and air quality obligations
• whether we can minimise noise and disruption to local communities
• whether this will benefit airlines and passengers, and how we make sure costs are shared fairly

This government believes in increasing airport capacity. We鈥檙e ambitious for the sector, but these strict criteria must be met if we are to balance the needs of today with the necessities of tomorrow.聽聽

But it鈥檚 not just about airport expansion 鈥� I want us to take a holistic look at aviation.聽Our Aviation Minister, Mike Kane, has worked with many of you for years on what are now some of this government鈥檚 key manifesto commitments.聽He has seen first-hand this sector re-emerge stronger from one of its toughest periods and stand today at the cusp of what could be the biggest transformation in its 100-year history. Now more than ever, you need a government that is a willing partner you can trust, whose electoral mandate provides stability, and whose policy agenda provides certainty.

But I would ask that you judge me and the government not on what we say 鈥� because goodness knows you鈥檝e had enough of politicians promising you things. But judge us on the choices we make. While this government is only 8 months old, our choices are clear.聽Every decision measured against the yardstick of growth:

• planning reforms 鈥� delayed by successive governments as just too hard, now allowing us to finally build again
• a national wealth fund 鈥� now creating thousands of jobs and unlocking investment
• the first industrial strategy in years 鈥� due this summer
• work accelerated on modernising our airspace, that critical national infrastructure which gets forgotten far too often

Right across the board, it鈥檚 clear, we鈥檙e choosing growth. For us here tonight, that means running hell for leather towards greener and quieter flights. Stand still and we risk making ourselves poorer in every way. I, therefore, see both decarbonisation and modernisation, above all, as a moral mission.

Let me be clear, I have no intention of clipping anyone鈥檚 wings.聽I am not some sort of flight-shaming eco-warrior. I love flying 鈥� I always have. For me, there is something intrinsically optimistic about taking to the sky.聽I鈥檇 even go as far as saying that EasyJet鈥檚 bacon sandwich on an early morning flight from Gatwick is up there with my favourite things in life. Other airports, operators and snacks are of course available!

I believe it is incumbent on all those in public life to give businesses the tools for success and increase opportunities for people to improve their lot. That means more passengers and freight in the air, not less. But I am equally clear that this must also mean less carbon, not more. That鈥檚 why sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) is so important. Over its lifecycle, it will reduce emissions by 70% when compared with jet fuel. And just weeks into office, we reiterated our commitment to the SAF Mandate and, in November, we signed it into law.

Throughout, we鈥檝e listened to your concerns. You rightly said demand without supply will mean higher costs 鈥� and that鈥檚 on top of pressures you鈥檙e already facing on many fronts.聽Harming your competitiveness doesn鈥檛 help anyone. So I don鈥檛 suggest for a second that SAF is a silver bullet, but it聽is聽integral to reaching net zero aviation by 2050 鈥� that鈥檚 why we are backing it to the hilt. And by legislating for a price guarantee, we will send a clear signal to investors: that this is a serious opportunity for you.

聽It will give certainty to producers looking to grow their UK production, and our 拢63 million investment in the Advanced Fuels Fund will ensure we start becoming more self-sufficient.聽

I know it is early days, and many technologies are not yet scaled, but SAF sits alongside a range of other levers that we must pull to decarbonise the sector. More efficient aircraft and engines will burn less fuel and play a key role. We are even starting to get ready for zero emission flights. These projects 鈥� and more 鈥� are supported by nearly 拢1 billion in government funding for the aerospace technology programme as well as the CAA鈥檚 hydrogen in aviation regulatory challenge.聽And I鈥檝e mentioned it already, but our ongoing commitment to airspace modernisation is key for both growth and decarbonisation, with the potential for quicker and greener flights.聽

Getting all this right matters 鈥� it matters for the planet and for the next generation. I don鈥檛 have children, but I know what I want for my nieces and nephew.

A world ravaged by climate change and extreme weather events? Of course not.

A world where they have been denied the opportunities to travel that I have? No.

I want them to live life. To fly. To see different places. Experience different cultures. To understand that those who would see countries retreating into their own corners of the globe are on the wrong side of history.聽聽

So this matters 鈥� for the next generation, but also for today.聽Decarbonising aviation could be worth billions to the economy, and support thousands of jobs.聽It is an important enabler to our industrial strategy.

And if we are to be successful, we must embrace partnership.

I am grateful to many in this room for your involvement in the Jet Zero taskforce, it鈥檚 crucial that we pool our resources and expertise 鈥� both government and industry 鈥� to secure this industry鈥檚 future. 聽

So, I鈥檒l finish by saying this 鈥� the government鈥檚 Plan for Change depends on aviation鈥檚 success, on the economic value you bring, on the jobs you support, on the trade you facilitate. But that growth depends on us running聽as fast as we can towards cleaner aviation. It鈥檚 the only way to break out of the paralysis successive governments have tolerated.

The new aviation futures forum will be a crucial vehicle for that work. Some of you may remember this as the Aviation Council 鈥� and I鈥檓 sorry that we seem to have to rename everything when there鈥檚 a change of government. But I hope it鈥檚 clear that our commitment is immutable: we are as determined as you are to tackling our shared challenges.

I don鈥檛 just want to talk about challenges though. Because if we continue making the right choices, we聽will聽achieve our shared vision of a growing, thriving aviation sector. One that improves both the lives and the livelihoods of people right across the country. Not many sectors so visibly and tangibly sustain both our economy and people鈥檚 lives.聽So let鈥檚 make sure, together, that we secure more of those benefits in the future.

Thank you.