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Visit the Parliament website for a full copy of the Bill or to follow its progress through Parliament.
The Bill, which was outlined in the Queens Speech, is a clear signal of the UKs commitment to enabling commercial spaceflight from UK spaceports, and a key part of the Governments Industrial Strategy to ensure the UK businesses capture a share of this emerging global market.
Lord Callanan, Parliamentary under Secretary of State for Transport introduced the Space Industry Bill, which is a joint initiative by the Department for Transport, UK Space Agency and Civil Aviation Authority supported by the Health and Safety Executive.
Universities and Science Minister Jo Johnson said:
The Space Industry Bill will ensure the UK remains a leading player in the commercial space age by enabling small satellite launch from UK spaceports. The measures in the Bill will help make the UK the most attractive place in Europe for commercial launch and enable UK businesses to capture a growing share of this emerging global market.
The emerging markets for small satellite launch and sub-orbital flight are forecast to be worth over 25 billion globally over the next 20 years. They offer exciting opportunities to grow the UK space sector, create local jobs and inspire the next generation of British scientists and engineers.
The main elements of the Bill are:
- new powers to license a wide range of spaceflight activities, including vertically-launched rockets, spaceplanes, satellite operation, spaceports and other technologies
- a comprehensive and proportionate regulatory framework to manage risk, ensuring that commercial spaceflight in the UK remains safe
- measures to regulate unauthorised access and interference with spacecraft, spaceports and associated infrastructure, drawing on the UKs extensive expertise particularly in aviation security
- measures to promote public safety by providing a regulatory framework to cover operational insurance, indemnity and liability
This legislation will ensure the UK can take advantage of new markets, overcome dependence on foreign launch services and benefit from the development of new spaceports and supply chains.