Commenting on the Government’s decision to delay a final decision on airport expansion for another year, Mark Littlewood, Director General at the Institute of Economic Affairs said:

“Yet another delay on airport expansion is a severe blow for our struggling aviation industry, business and consumers alike. For too long UK airport infrastructure has severely lagged behind demand with both Heathrow and Gatwick inching closer to full capacity, consequently bottle-necking development of the sector and stalling economic growth. Thirteen years of dithering is unacceptable.

“Airport operators should be able to bypass politicians completely in order to independently agree the terms of compensation with those who will lose out. Airport expansion would then be completely de-politicised and expansion left up to the interested parties, not used as a political football.”

Notes to editors: 
For media enquiries please contact Stephanie Lis, Director of Communications: slis@iea.org.uk or  07766 221 268

The IEA’s report De-politicising Airport Expansion, which calls for a new market mechanism to solve airport capacity issues, can be downloaded here.

The mission of the Institute of Economic Affairs is to improve understanding of the fundamental institutions of a free society by analysing and expounding the role of markets in solving economic and social problems.

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