Airport gets £8m help for difficult year
EAST Midlands Airport is set to get millions of pounds of Government aid to help it get through what has been a very tough year for the travel industry.
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps has announced that EMA and Birmingham airports will receive a Government grant of up to £8 million each.
The funding will be equivalent to the business rates that the airports would otherwise have to pay, meaning that EMA and Birmingham airports will pay nothing in business rates for 202021.
The extra funding will provide security by protecting jobs. Additionally, the Government has also announced plans to reduce the time holidaymakers have to self-isolate after travelling abroad, which, it is hoped, will provide a significant boost to the industry when travel picks up once again when it is safe to do so.
From December 15, passengers returning from overseas will be given the option of having a coronavirus test after five days in isolation, with a negative test releasing them from the need to isolate for any longer.
Airports, airlines and other aviation businesses have also been able to draw on the Government support, including the coronavirus Job Retention Scheme and Business Interruption Loans.
Earlier in the year, Charlie Cornish, chief executive of Manchester Airports Group, which operates the Leicestershire airport, said: “From the very start of this pandemic, as airports such as East Midlands lost all their passenger operations overnight and the devastating impact of Covid-19 on our industry became clear, we have appealed for a support package for airports.”
In total, the aviation and aerospace sectors have received more than £9 billion of Government support, which South Derbyshire MP Heather Wheeler said would be important in helping to protect jobs.
She said: “I am thrilled that East Midlands and Birmingham airports will receive up to £8 million each to help it protect jobs during these challenging times.
“Alongside the new testing strategy which could reduce the risks and the need to quarantine, I hope this funding will support jobs and businesses in our communities.
“There are many in South Derbyshire who work at East Midlands or Birmingham airports and I hope this news provides them with some reassurance.
“This Conservative Government has provided unprecedented levels of support to protect jobs and businesses through the pandemic, and this latest support will be hugely important for helping South Derbyshire to build back better after coronavirus.”