Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial news
- London’s Heathrow airport forced to cut landing charges
- Move will protect customers and allow investment, says CAA
- Heathrow had pushed for higher charges
- Shop workers blame cost of living stress for rising abuse
- South London tram drivers’ strike to follow national rail walkout
- UK telecoms industry agrees plan to help struggling customers
Last year, our financial editor Nils Pratley wrote a stinging rebuke of Heathrow’s push for a big rise in landing charges.
He argued that the airport’s owners should count their blessings, rather than look for special pandemic privileges, and dismissed the argument that investors would shun the UK.
The owners of Heathrow, who have done very nicely for themselves over the years, have an extraordinary ability to believe the world owes them a living in all circumstances.
“As the industry rebuilds, our focus is to work alongside airlines and their ground handlers to give passengers a reliable and consistent journey through Heathrow.
The CAA continues to underestimate what it takes to deliver a good passenger service, both in terms of the level of investment and operating costs required and the fair incentive needed for private investors to finance it. Uncorrected, these elements of the CAA’s proposal will only result in passengers getting a worse experience at Heathrow as investment in service dries up.
“We will take time to assess the CAA’s proposal in more detail and will provide a further evidence-based response to this latest consultation. There is still time for the CAA to get this right with a plan that puts passengers first and encourages everyone in the industry to work together to better serve the travelling public.”
Continue reading…