David Cameron speech on infrastructure

David Cameron speech on infrastructure; David Cameron speech continued SOT- And yes, there's one other transport challenge we need to be bold about, too/ I'm not blind to the need to increase airport capacity, particularly in the south-east./ We are acting now to make the best use of existing capacity - Gatwick is emerging as a business airport for London, under a new owner competing with Heathrow/ But we need to retain our status as a key global hub for air travel, not just a feeder route to bigger airports elsewhere, in Frankfurt, Amsterdam or Dubai/ Yes, this will be controversial/ We will need to take decisions for the long-term - and we will be bringing forward options in our aviation strategy which will include an examination of the pros and cons of a new airport in the Thames estuary.- The next area where we are planning bold transformation is energy/ We need to find diverse, secure sources of energy that can meet demand, keep prices stable and cut the impact of carbon on the planet/ But this is the problem we inherited/ We're powering our country through an out-of-date, inefficient grid and ageing, polluting power stations/We need to replace coal plants, invest in modern gas power and affordable renewable energy/ Gas power will continue to be absolutely vital for our electricity system - and we will work with industry to develop a new gas generation strategy that draws in investment and secures electricity supply- Today, nuclear energy forms the backbone of our low-carbon generation fleet but the nine plants still left in service in Britain are reaching the end of their life/ I'm convinced that we need to press ahead with their replacement - but that involves three big challenges/ One - getting the price right, without state subsidy/ Two - getting plants built on time/ Three - making sure we maximise the economic benefits to the UK in terms of skills, jobs and manufacturing/ So today I can confirm our intention to work with the private sector ...