27/01/2022
OPINION:
The council have a lot to answer for regarding the expansion of Liverpool John Lennon Airport.
Liverpool City Council members, from across different political parties, are now opposing the expansion due to the environmental impact, on the area and are now threatening to withdraw council funding from the airport all together. It’s unclear what is meant by the funding the council gives to the airport.
The council currently own just 10% of the airport, whilst Peel Group own 45% and Ancala Partners own the other 45%.
According to the report below, the airport currently contributes £250 million per year to the Liverpool economy, but if the £100 million expansion got the go ahead, this could potentially rise to £625 million per year.
In both 2018 and 2019, the airport saw more than 5 million passengers travel through it, but in 2021 that figure plummeted to just over 1 million passengers - partially due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The travel industry, as a whole, is still recovering and it will take time. But, over recent weeks airlines like Ryanair, Easyjet and Wizz Air have all CUT routes from the airport and moved those operations to both Manchester Airport & London Gatwick.
The only light on the horizon is that the airport successfully negotiated with Lufthansa to launch services to Frankfurt from May 2022. Passengers using that service can check-in for their final destination in Liverpool and use their Frankfurt hub to fly to hundreds of locations across the globe.
But, with Lufthansa showing confidence in the airport and what it could achieve for them, why can’t the council do the same? Why are they so set on allowing the airport to fail?
The council will give excuse after excuse after excuse as to why they’re withdrawing the funding, but many local people want the expansion to go ahead due to the investment it would bring - in jobs, tourism and money to the local economy.
The expansion would bring more routes to the area, including a London route from British Airways, but the airline currently won’t launch one as it believes the airport needs more investment… and it does!
Don’t get me wrong, I’m a huge supporter of the airport and I want to see it expand and be more successful than it already is. It has had great investment to improve passenger facilities, but it needs more.
Executives at the airport have put a plan of action in place to; expand the runway, extend and improve the airport terminal buildings and build a solar farm capable of 2.5 KWH’s of electricity per year.
But, Green Party councillor Anna Key, says this goes against the councils aim of becoming carbon neutral by 2030. Can we really allow our airport to fail thoug for the sake of the councils carbon neutral target? No, we can’t!
I understand there will be some sort of impact to the environment, but the airport is putting plans in place to combat that and we can’t stop investment and jobs that people desperately need for the sake of the environment - especially when another airport down the motorway is seeing constant investment and new routes announced each day.
The council really needs to start doing what is right for it’s people and stop using the excuses of environment and heritage to stop the city from moving forward and being stuck in the past. The city is being left behind and we can’t allow the council to keep doing it.
SUPPORT THE LIVERPOOL AIRPORT EXPANSION!
Liam Fitzsimmons
L Media News
*Credit to Place North West for their article.
Liverpool City Council last night took a step towards "removing financial support" for the airport amid concerns about its proposed expansion.
