BAA reacts to Competition Commission report

BAA, owner of seven UK airports, has responded formally to the report issued this past week by the UK Competition Commission, in which it was ordered to sell off three of its airports.

The airports operator was told by the competition watchdog that it had to find new owners for two of three of its London airports and one of its two airports in Scotland, over concerns of monopolistic dominance of the market.

Speculation was raised following the ruling of a bidding war over the airports, but it will actually take some months before the commission’s ruling is sanctioned by the government. BAA quickly issued a strong rebuttal to the report.

BAA’s chief executive, Colin Matthews, called the watchdog group’s proposals seriously “flawed,” indicating that they come at a time when airports in the UK are already suffering from being overstretched in terms of capacity.

The airports owner insists that a forced break-up of its group of facilities would delay progress in expanding capacity, particularly in regard to the London airports, and in dealing effectively with what is being called the ‘Heathrow hassle’ factor.

Matthews added: “Just as the government is about to make the decisions that could lead to the first full-length runways being built in the south-east since the second world war, the commission risks creating uncertainty, delay and confusion.”

He also stressed that the commission was misguided in its statements about ‘competition in London’, as in reality Heathrow Airport’s competitors are other major hubs in Europe – and not BAA’s other airports.

www.baa.com