Airport boss angry at No.10’s ‘decision-making lockdown’
Quarantine rules ‘chaotic’ and ‘no support for the industry’
THE government’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic and resulting travel restrictions has sparked a stinging rebuke from the boss of East Midlands Airport.
Charlie Cornish, chief executive of Manchester Airports Group, which operates the Leicestershire airport, said Number 10’s approach to quarantine rules was “sluggish, illogical and chaotic”.
He said: “Large parts of the airport remain closed and it’s fair to say passenger numbers are a handful of what we’d usually expect.
“The impact of Covid-19 – and quarantine restrictions – on the travel industry is clear for all to see.
“It is evident in the tens of thousands of job losses that have already been announced and the millions of holidays already cancelled.
“Throughout the pandemic there has been no evidence of any recognition from the government of the need to protect the travel industry and enable it to recover from what is undoubtedly the biggest crisis it has ever faced. We see no signs that it wants to avoid further jobs losses, or an appreciation of the critical role airports will have in the economic revival of regions across the country as we gingerly emerge from this crippling pandemic.
“This in stark contrast to the approach we have seen taken by numerous governments around the world, whose decisive action to protect their aviation sectors makes clear how much value they attach to them.
“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.
“But our request for business rates relief was ignored, despite lockdown. The impact of this decision has been amplified many times over by its sluggish, chaotic and illogical approach to travel restrictions, an area where we have watched other nations move quickly and decisively while our government has remained in its own decision-making lockdown.”
A Department for Transport spokesman said: “The government recognises the impact coronavirus is having on the economy and workers and has put together an extensive package of financial support to help the aviation sector.
“Public health remains the UK’s top priority and we are committed to tackling this virus while enabling a sustainable and responsible return to international travel.”
It said it makes changes to the travel corridor list to specific countries as necessary, in light of the developing health situation.
It also said in the UK it has a very detailed picture of where infections are, but not the same level of detail about other countries.