Mayoral authority to vote on funding to support purchase of Doncaster Sheffield Airport
The South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA) is to decide whether to grant £3.1m to support the purchase of Doncaster Sheffield Airport. The authority’s board will meet later to discuss a request from Doncaster Council for funding for legal action to force owners Peel Group to sell the site. Peel closed the airport in November, saying it was not financially viable. The council is considering pursuing a compulsory purchase order (CPO.) In April, the local authority agreed to set aside £3.1m towards the costs of taking legal action. It said a CPO would only be needed if all other avenues, such as a negotiated sale or lease, were exhausted. The council has asked SYMCA for financial support for “the costs of building a case”, a report to the SYMCA’s annual general meeting said. The council believes its costs could reach up to £6.25m and has warned it may be unable pursue a CPO if funding is refused.
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Mayoral authority to vote on funding to support purchase of Doncaster Sheffield Airport
6.6.2023
The airport was opened to passengers in 2005 and closed in 2022
By Chris Baynes, BBC News
The South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA) is to decide whether to grant £3.1m to support the purchase of Doncaster Sheffield Airport.
The authority’s board will meet later to discuss a request from Doncaster Council for funding for legal action to force owners Peel Group to sell the site.
Peel closed the airport in November, saying it was not financially viable.
The council is considering pursuing a compulsory purchase order (CPO.)
In April, the local authority agreed to set aside £3.1m towards the costs of taking legal action. It said a CPO would only be needed if all other avenues, such as a negotiated sale or lease, were exhausted.
The council has asked SYMCA for financial support for “the costs of building a case”, a report to the SYMCA’s annual general meeting said.
South Yorkshire’s Mayor Oliver Coppard told BBC Radio Sheffield there were “two big decisions” to be made.
“Both the funding package to take the legal process forward and should the legal process be successful, money available for us to take control of the airport and then sell it onto an investor.”
The council wants to reopen the airport
Expected expenses include a financial viability assessment, the production of an outline business case, and professional service and legal fees, the report said.
The council believes its costs could reach up to £6.25m and has warned it may be unable pursue a CPO if funding is refused.
It has not at this stage sought costs for the acquisition or operating of the airport should the legal action be successful.
The mayoral authority report, written by executive director of resources and investment Gareth Sutton, does not make a recommendation on how the board should vote.
But it said the proposal was “affordable” and noted the airport brought £108.4m into the region’s economy each year when it was operating.
The council has said it wanted to reopen the airport and “grow a cluster of businesses and commercial activity that complements traditional aerospace functions”.
Mr Coppard said they would ensure they were taking “good decisions” with public money.
“Ultimately investing in the airport, investing in a thriving regional airport, is good for economic growth, it’s good for jobs and I think it is good for our community.”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-south-yorkshire-65792138
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See earlier:
Doncaster Council considers leasing closed Doncaster Sheffield Airport at considerable expense from Peel
Doncaster Council could lease Doncaster Sheffield Airport (DSA), which closed recently, from its owners, Peel L&P, under plans being considered. The airport was wound down by Peel in November 2022, citing the financial viability of the site. At a meeting later this month, the council is set to discuss ring-fencing more than £3m for a compulsory purchase order to buy the airport. The council said Peel had recently offered a lease of the airport. The council hopes to reopen the site, and provide jobs. The order to potentially buy DSA from Peel is expected to initially cost up to £3.1m in legal costs. A report looking at what can be done to reopen the airport is set to be discussed at a cabinet meeting on 12 April. The plan is for the area around the airport to contain a cluster of businesses to compliment the site. The Mayor of Doncaster said, rather over-optimistically, that the airport “has the potential to be the jewel in the crown of the Doncaster and South Yorkshire economy.” In fact, it will generally just provide holiday flights, taking local residents to spend their money abroad.
Click here to view full story…
Doncaster Sheffield airport to close after no ‘tangible proposals’ put forward
Doncaster Sheffield airport is to close later this year, its owners have confirmed, despite the offer of financial aid from public funds. This leaves hundreds of staff facing redundancy and comes days after Liz Truss said she had instructed ministers to protect the airport. The airport’s owners, the Peel Group, which had extended a public consultation period by 10 days, said a strategic review had ended without any clear proposals on the airport site’s financial viability, or a potential buyer. They said the high costs of running the airport, whose flight numbers have fallen by more than half since 2019, meant it would start winding down operations from 31st October. Peel is in consultation with staff about losing their jobs. Local politicians wanted the government to provide more public money for it, but at present the UK government has massive and increasing debts, partly from capping household and business energy costs, and no cash to spare. Peel realises subsidising a permanently loss-making airport is not a sensible use of scarce public funds. It has made big losses since the start of the pandemic, and there are other airports in the area (Leeds, Manchester) that travellers can easily use.
Click here to view full story…
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