- Over the summer, the Welsh Government announced a proposed funding package of £205m over a decade for Cardiff Airport.
- Cardiff Airport insists the funding is required to turn around its fortunes and doesn't believe it would negatively impact rival Bristol.
- London City Airport’s owners have injected £130 million in new equity to stabilise the airport’s finances amid a prolonged downturn in business travel.
“Investment in airports – as with any large-scale transport infrastructure – is crucial in order to ensure they are able to grow and thrive. This of course, includes large scale subsidies such as the £206 million proposed support package for Cardiff Airport.
“Whilst I do not dispute this positive injection of investment for Cardiff Airport, I do dispute where it is coming from. It remains my belief that the private sector is the right environment for this vital Welsh transport link to thrive, and that we would see much greater investment, growth and passenger take-up if the competitive free market was utilised.
“We all know that government funding is stretched. A move to the private sector would not only encourage efficiency, competition and attract greater investment and growth for Cardiff Airport, but it would free-up more taxpayer cash to spend in other areas of the budget that so desperately need help under current circumstances.”
