Bexit uncertainty will act as a drag on the economy and damage consumer confidence, the boss of airports group MAG warned today.
The chief executive of the company that owns Manchester, Stansted and East Midlands airports was speaking while revealing a 4.9% rise in annual passenger numbers to 61.8 million in the year to March.
Annual profits [ebitda] increased by 5.9% year-on-year to almost £380 million.
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But continuing Brexit-related uncertainty is creating a more challenging outlook for the group in terms of economic growth and passenger demand.
CEO Charlie Cornish said: “We welcome the government and EU’s commitment to maintaining vital air connectivity between the UK and Europe even in the event of a ‘no deal’ Brexit, something which allows passengers to book and travel with confidence.
“But continued uncertainty about Brexit will ultimately act as a drag on the economy and damage consumer confidence.”
He added: “It is vital that the government finds a political solution to Brexit over the coming months to enable the country to move forward and to rebuild consumer confidence.”
Cornish also reiterated a call for more government support for regional airports.
“By improving international connectivity to different regions, MAG airports will do far more to secure economic growth and rebalancing across the UK than a third runway at Heathrow will,” he said.
“The government must now show an active commitment to supporting the future growth of airports like Manchester, London Stansted and East Midlands.
“To achieve this, the government must support the delivery of better transport links to airports across the country as part of an integrated plan to grow global connections from the North, Midlands and the South.”
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