BAA dismisses break up demands
Airports operator BAA has strongly rejected calls by airlines like British Airways and Ryanair for the company to be broken up.
The group, which runs the London airports of Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted plus four others in the UK, argued that a more fragmented ownership structure would undermine investment in airport capacity.
Responding to an Office of Fair Trading study into UK airports, BAA chief executive Stephen Nelson said: “I fully understand why airlines like British Airways and Ryanair want to weaken airport operators and achieve greater control over prices and investment at the airports where they hold powerful positions themselves, but the job of the competition authorities is to protect the longer term interests of all consumers.
“The biggest problem facing UK air travellers is the shortage of airport capacity, expecially in South East England. Failure to build new runway capacity will lead to gridlock, disappointed customers and significant loss to the national economy.”
Nelson added: “Despite this, some airlines want to break up BAA and impose even heavier price regulation.
“This have-it-both-ways proposal would be a poisonous cocktail for consumers. It risks setting back the much needed investment programme which BAA is pursuing, to trasform London’s airports through projects like Heathrow Terminal 5, Heathrow East and the Stansted second runway.”
BAA claimed that the threat to investment from break-up would outweigh any possible benefits to consumers in terms of choice, price or quality of service.
Nelson said: “We are not saying that the current situation is perfect and we welcome the OFT’s review, so long as it is wide-ranging and evidence-based. The OFT needs to consider regulation as well as ownershp structures.
“The evidence suggest BAA has done a good job since privatisation, in terms of security and safety; capacity; quality of service and price.”
Report by Phil Davies
Phil Davies
Vegas’s Billion-Dollar Secrets – What They Don’t Want Tourists to Know
Visit Florida’s New CEO Bryan Griffin Shares His Vision for State Tourism with Graham
Chicago’s Tourism Renaissance: Graham Interviews Kristin Reynolds of Choose Chicago
Graham Talks with Cassandra McCauley of MMGY NextFactor About the Latest Industry Research
Destination International’s Andreas Weissenborn: Research, Advocacy, and Destination Impact
Graham and Don Welsh Discuss the Success of Destinations International’s Annual Conference
Graham and CEO Andre Kiwitz on Ventura Travel’s UK Move and Recruitment for the Role
Brett Laiken and Graham Discuss Florida’s Tourism Momentum and Global Appeal
Graham and Elliot Ferguson on Positioning DC as a Cultural and Inclusive Global Destination
Graham Talks to Fraser Last About His England-to-Ireland Trek for Mental Health Awareness
Kathy Nelson Tells Graham About the Honour of Hosting the World Cup and Kansas City’s Future
Graham McKenzie on Sir Richie Richardson’s Dual Passion for Golf and His Homeland, Antigua
ADS PRO 
Phocuswright reveals the world's largest travel markets in volume in 2025
Cyclone in Sri Lanka had limited effect on tourism in contrary to media reports
Higher departure tax and visa cost, e-arrival card: Japan unleashes the fiscal weapon against tourists
Singapore to forbid entry to undesirable travelers with new no-boarding directive
Euromonitor International unveils world’s top 100 city destinations for 2025