Mr Bryant
cc Mr Steele
Mr Whitaker
Mr Salmon
CAP
Sols
Mr Overall
CAA
Mr Morland
Mr Gardiner
FCO/MAED! FCO/Legal
AIR SERVICES ON THE LONDON HONG KONG ROUTE
You asked for the reasons behind the advice given by the Solicitor
to the Secretary of State at a meeting on 13 June, referred to in a letter from Mr Steele of 18 June to Mr Cortazzi,
that it would not be proper for the Secretary of State to issue a direction to the CAA under s.4(3) of the Civil Aviation
Act 1971 that, in considering an application for a licence for the London-Hong Kong route, it should treat Cathay Pacific Airways Limited on an equal footing with UK based airlines.
Under s.4(3) the Secretary of State has power, after consultation with the CAA, to give the CAA directions to do a particular
or to refrain from doing a particular, thing thing which it has power to do in the circumstances mentioned in that subsection. Thus he could give a direction to it not to consider a particular application for an air transport licence or to grant or to refuse to grant a particular licence.
Such a direction could clearly have the effect of overriding
the duties in s.3. He could not however in our view direct
the CAA when considering the application to disregard its duty under s.3(1) or consider the application in the light of some other duty imposed by the Secretary of State...
In practice however it should be possible to reach much the same position, since if the CAA indicate that but for this duty under s.3(1)(a) they would have granted a licence to CPA, the Secretary of State could then consider giving them an appropriate direction.
I would however admit that another view is possible and we would be prepared to put the matter to Treasury Counsel if you so wish.
DE 18-77
K A M JOHNSON
Assistant Solicitor
Pa 616 ML/Tel 215 4065
1 August 1979
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