To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the likely effect of the Civil Aviation Authority’s decision to allow a fifth ground handler on the operation and safety of Gatwick Airport. (128800)

The responsibility for determining any limits on the number of companies permitted to provided ground handling services at a UK airport rests with the Civil Aviation Authority under the Airports (Groundhandling) Regulations 1997. The CAA’s assessment of the impact of revoking the limit on the number of ground handling service providers at Gatwick airport is set out in the CAA Official Record Series 2, number 1786, which was published on 20 February 2007.