Back on 27th June last year, 2013, Danny Alexander, Chief Secretary to the Treasury, delivered his ‘Investing in Britain’s Future’ speech on the government’s infrastructural development plan.
In that speech, saying that ‘air connections are crucial to regional economies’, he announced that the UK Government was to provide £10 million to establish A Regional Air Connectivity Fund.
At that stage, no detail was given except that the fund was to assist regional airports to develop routes, where possible, as connections to the major air travel hub airports.
In his speech, the Chief Treasury Secretary said: ‘I will look forward to Howard Davies’ report into this, and other aviation issues’. In this he was referring to the Airports Commission which had been set up under the chairmanship of Howard Davies and which delivered its interim report in December 2013.
Two days later, on his personal website, MR Alexander said: ‘The £10m Regional Air Connectivity fund has been established to ensure that regions outside the High Speed Rail 2 network will also benefit from stronger transport links. Details of the fund are be announced at a later date.’
Expanding on his theme, he said: ‘We need to ensure that the Highlands has the transport structure to enable us to make the most of the enormous economic potential the area holds.
‘This new fund will make sure that areas like ours can feel secure that they will have the long terms transport links with London and other parts of the UK the need to avoid being disadvantaged by being outside the new High Speed Rail network.
‘The recent concern over the potential loss of the former Flybe routes [Ed: this refers principally to Inverness airport] should have convinced us all of the need for this fund.’
Hitrans submission and the connectivity issues of landing slots and PSOs
Hitrans, the statutory Regional Transport Partnership for the Highlands and Islands of Scotland, was very quick off the mark, putting a submission to the Airports Commission on 11 July 2013, a precise two weeks after the Treasury Secretary’s announcement.
They had seen Flybe close its base at Inverness, along with bases at other UK regional airports – and sell its Heathrow slots to Easyjet. This left Inverness without its valuable direct route to the top level international hub of Heathrow and with a reduced service flying into Gatwick.
In its submission to the Commission, Hitrans makes the serious point that: ‘…if the Commission does not act to make recommendations to Government in its Interim Measures package that explicitly protect the interests of UK peripheral regions, it will by default materially disadvantage them by allowing London’s key airports and slot hungry carriers wishing to serve other markets to use slots currently allocated to domestic regional services to be re-deployed for other commercially, but not necessarily economically, lucrative purposes’.
The argument here is that what really matters for effective regional airport connectivity is the bald imperative of landing slots to enable connections to what Hitrans, not unreasonably, sees as the necessity for the UK’s air transport infrastructure – a single major London hub in the south east.
It then says: ‘a truly “national” hub which benefits all parts of the UK, not just London and the South East, needs mechanisms to be put in place that “guarantee in perpetuity” slots for access from all the UK regions that need them.
It then comes down firmly on the issue of PSOs – Public Service Obligations – which are effectively state subsidised monopolys on specific routes tendered for a contract period and offered in this way because the routes in question are deemed to be economically and’or socially necessary. This is the argument for our familiar lifeline ferry services.
In envisaging – and in asking for, guaranteed landing slots at the main London hub to be made available to specific UK regional airports, Hitrans weighs against PSOs. saying that guaranteeing slots in this way ‘does not require a panoply of PSOs which would need to be updated every 3-5 years’.
The contrary view says that PSOs are the only way to ensure that the necessary regional connections are made.
Developing the Regional Air Connectivity Fund
In his budget speech on 19th March this year, 2014, Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne, extended the scope of the existing Regional Air Connectivity Fund to include start-up aid for new routes from regional airports. It is also now known that the size of the fund, which will run for two years, is to be doubled to £20 million.
Political welcome for the extension of the Fund
As someone who has consistently supported increased air services between his region and other parts of the UK, Jamie McGrigor says: ‘The increase of the Regional Air Connectivity Fund is a welcome step towards ensuring that businesses and the hardworking people of the Highlands and Islands are well connected with the rest of Scotland and indeed the United Kingdom. I hope to see airports across the region benefiting from this increase in funding.
‘This budget reinforces our strong commitment to business in all regions of the United Kingdom and sends out the message that we are open for business, regardless of geographical location. On this very important issue I hope to see that the Scottish government cooperating with the UK government in ensuring the best deal possible for our regional airports.’
Without a major centre of population, the best Argyll can hope for is to retain the one-stop connections to a major hub that it already has through Campbeltown, Islay and Tiree airports.
