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An ‘airport task force’ might sound like a group of heroes in a substandard children’s TV program, but that is exactly what the government has christened a new scheme aimed at improving customer experience at Britain’s airports. The task force will help the UK produce ‘better not bigger’ airports, reducing the need for terminal expansions.

British Airways (BA) and BAA have both had their plans scuppered by the new Prime Minister, David Cameron. BA had hoped to expand at Heathrow until the airport’s third runway was axed, whilst BAA has been forbidden from building anything new at Stansted Airport.

Willie Walsh, the owner of BA, is now planning to move to Spain, taking his airline and the majority of its business operations with him. The move bodes ill for the economy, but Mr Cameron is unlikely to be swayed from his environmental campaigns, which means that the UK’s airports are being forced to find other ways to make their terminals more attractive to customers and investors.

The task force will initially focus on airports in the southeast, addressing concerns that airport shops are encroaching on waiting areas, leading to overcrowding. Representatives from Ryanair, EasyJet and Virgin will help develop the scheme, but authorities in the southeast want the government to allow local councillors onto the panel.

Last week, Transport Secretary Philip Hammond explained his ‘clear vision’ for Britain’s airports, stating that the task force will "create better services for passengers", and that it is "absolutely crucial that we get this right as aviation is vital to our national economy". Mr Hammond hopes to reduce queues and make aeroplanes more punctual.