A prominent business leader has criticised aspects of the Scottish Government’s late-in-coming aviation strategy as "troubling" and "falling short".
He raises concerns over the SNP supporting five new blockbuster Edinburgh Airport North America routes and none for Glasgow, and warns that “there must be a risk that so much route development going to the one airport is distorting the market”.
Stuart Patrick, chief executive of Glasgow Chamber of Commerce, writes in a scathing Business Voices column in The Herald that "it is troubling that every new flight to America it has financially supported in the last two years has gone to Edinburgh Airport".
Ahead of the publication of the much-anticipated strategy, Edinburgh Airport chiefs called for the target net for new destinations to be thrown wider, and restrictions removed, while Glasgow Airport echoed calls for teamwork with government agencies around Scotland’s aviation hubs, which when raised.
Andy Cliffe, chief executive of AGS Airports, which owns Glasgow and Aberdeen in Scotland and Southampton in England, said the government should consider the wider role of tourism and air travel.
Mr Cliffe, who joined the board of directors at the Scottish Tourism Alliance, the industry body, in October, said that the Scottish Government’s budget did not include business rates relief was “not only concerning, it was a missed opportunity”.
Rather than helping pave the way for a new era in Scottish flight, it has caused further concern it would seem.
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Mr Patrick said: "Where the document falls short in its uneven approach to regional development. Perhaps the most egregious example is its commitment to a so-called ‘strictly neutral’ stance on air route development, where the decision on which airport to use is left entirely to the airlines, with the Government refraining from any influence.
"While the Government may consider this process neutral, the outcomes tell a different story. Over the past two years, the Government has supported five transatlantic flights to the United States and Canada, all departing from Edinburgh Airport, with none from Glasgow or Prestwick. According to an answer in Parliament, the Government spent £14.5m on supporting air services and while we don’t know how much was used to support the Edinburgh flights, there must be a risk that so much route development going to the one airport is distorting the market."
He also writes: "We should celebrate the commitment the Scottish Government is making to the aviation industry and the balance it is aiming to strike between economic growth and delivering on net zero targets. However, it needs to think more about the impact its policies may have on broader economic objectives."
Mr Patrick also said: "Glasgow Chamber of Commerce has been calling for clarity on the Scottish Government’s aviation position for some years and there is much to welcome in the document we now have. But there is one lingering concern. It offers much less than it could for the economy of the west of Scotland.
"It is troubling that every new flight to America it has financially supported in the last two years has gone to Edinburgh Airport. We hear too many business leaders in Glasgow lamenting the current lack of flights from Glasgow across the Atlantic. The Scottish Government has the power to address these concerns."
Jim Fairlie, Minister for Agriculture and Connectivity, said: “In 2023 we supported the launch of new routes to Atlanta with Delta Air Lines, and Calgary with WestJet. Further developments in 2024 have seen JetBlue serve Scotland for the first time with their service to New York JFK, and WestJet resuming their services to Toronto and Halifax.
"The routes that we continue to target are in line with the key markets for inbound tourism, business connectivity and export growth."
The minister also said that the strategy, or statement, as it was to be described, "sets out, for the first time, the strategic importance of aviation to Scotland and the specific actions the Scottish Government will take to help ensure we can continue to enjoy its many benefits while significantly reducing its emissions in line with our net zero ambitions".
We have raised issues around target destinations which can be supported by the Scottish Government, and now the chamber chief has brought a further argument to the table on Holyrood’s role both in influencing new routes and supporting them financially.
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