CWL gets £206m to boost passenger numbers

[TonyM90]

For that level of investment CWL should have landed a new base of some sort. Some piecemeal routes is pretty poor.

They would be as well just building a new airport if they are going to sink that much money down the pan on the current one. CWL is very poorly situated, but its pretty strategic for Wales as a whole because its the only commercial airport of note which they have. Thats cash thats just going over the border instead.

[Iain]

https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wale ... e-31533602

Bristol Airport has issued a stinging criticism of Welsh Government plans to invest a further £205m into Cardiff Airport claiming the scale of the proposed subsidy would be unprecedented in the UK airport sector and provide its nearest rival with an unfair competitive advantage.....

......The airport confirmed it will wait on a response from Ms Evans before deciding on its next course of action. This could see it lodging a legal challenge to the Competition Appeals Tribunal, who would then make a ruling on whether the Welsh Government subsidy amounts to unfair state aid under the post EU Subsidy Control Act.

[Clive]

https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wale ... e-31533602

Bristol Airport has issued a stinging criticism of Welsh Government plans to invest a further £205m into Cardiff Airport claiming the scale of the proposed subsidy would be unprecedented in the UK airport sector and provide its nearest rival with an unfair competitive advantage.....

......The airport confirmed it will wait on a response from Ms Evans before deciding on its next course of action. This could see it lodging a legal challenge to the Competition Appeals Tribunal, who would then make a ruling on whether the Welsh Government subsidy amounts to unfair state aid under the post EU Subsidy Control Act.

BRS are on to plums. CWL is in a different country. Competition rules don’t cross borders. Hopefully for South Wales’ sake they can claw back some lost revenues.

[FlyGLA]

While it's true that competition rules don't automatically cross borders between different countries, within the UK, both Bristol Airport and Cardiff Airport are still subject to national competition regulations. Even though Cardiff is in Wales and Bristol is in England, they are both part of the UK, and therefore the same overarching competition laws apply across these boundaries. So, while the statement about competition rules not crossing national borders holds in a broader sense, the competition between the two airports is still regulated within the UK framework.

I'm entirely against government interference and politicians meddling where they’re not needed. If Cardiff wants to compete with Bristol, it should do so on its own merits. To this day, Glasgow is still paying the price for the Scottish Government's interference 20 years ago with their Edinburgh-centric Route Development Fund.

If you want something to operate efficiently, effectively, sustainably, profitably, and without corruption, keep politicians and the public sector well out of it.

[Clive]

While it's true that competition rules don't automatically cross borders between different countries, within the UK, both Bristol Airport and Cardiff Airport are still subject to national competition regulations. Even though Cardiff is in Wales and Bristol is in England, they are both part of the UK, and therefore the same overarching competition laws apply across these boundaries. So, while the statement about competition rules not crossing national borders holds in a broader sense, the competition between the two airports is still regulated within the UK framework.

I'm entirely against government interference and politicians meddling where they’re not needed. If Cardiff wants to compete with Bristol, it should do so on its own merits. To this day, Glasgow is still paying the price for the Scottish Government's interference 20 years ago with their Edinburgh-centric Route Development Fund.

If you want something to operate efficiently, effectively, sustainably, profitably, and without corruption, keep politicians and the public sector well out of it.

Well that’s true about the Scottish Office’s RDF.

If the Welsh Govt. want to support their airport and encourage the economic benefit that will bring them I’m all for it. BRS just don’t want to lose their dominance in the Welsh market. To me they can cry all they like.

[FlyGLA]

Bristol Airport built its success in a fair and open market. If the capital city, complete with a castle, can only compete through taxpayer-funded subsidies, it raises serious questions about the viability of both the business model and the genuine demand for an airport. The only ones crying are Welsh politicians, and likely Welsh taxpayers, as they watch their hard-earned money squandered.

The previous injection of over £200 million has yielded little more than a seasonal weekly flight to Fuerteventura in the summer and another to Salzburg in the winter, both operated by TUI. services that likely would have launched regardless of government intervention.

If only Glasgow Airport’s management had shown the same resolve in the early 2000s as Bristol’s team does now. Instead, they allowed Scottish MPs, including the then First Minister, to stage a press event at Glasgow Airport and onboard a Glasgow–Newark flight to promote the taxpayer-funded Edinburgh–Newark service. It was a disgraceful display of political interference.

[Clive]

Bristol Airport built its success in a fair and open market. If the capital city, complete with a castle, can only compete through taxpayer-funded subsidies, it raises serious questions about the viability of both the business model and the genuine demand for an airport. The only ones crying are Welsh politicians, and likely Welsh taxpayers, as they watch their hard-earned money squandered.

The previous injection of over £200 million has yielded little more than a seasonal weekly flight to Fuerteventura in the summer and another to Salzburg in the winter, both operated by TUI. services that likely would have launched regardless of government intervention.

If only Glasgow Airport’s management had shown the same resolve in the early 2000s as Bristol’s team does now. Instead, they allowed Scottish MPs, including the then First Minister, to stage a press event at Glasgow Airport and onboard a Glasgow–Newark flight to promote the taxpayer-funded Edinburgh–Newark service. It was a disgraceful display of political interference.

Sorry, can’t agree about Wales. It’s the Welsh Government’s duty to protect their only major airport and the economic input that can provide when successful. We know that successful airports are drivers of economic activity. Indeed we see here how the Scottish Government saved the facility at PIK from closure by taking it into public hands which protected local jobs and the wider economy to the tune of many millions each year. Of course Wales are going to do the same and if taking back some local market share is seen by BRS as eating their lunch then so be it. I suppose it would be different if Wales was part of England but it’s not. BRS will deal with the UK (English) Govt while the Welsh Govt. is dutied to act on devolved issues in Wales.

[egpffqtv]

4th based TUI at CWL just announced

https://x.com/seanm1997/status/19175193 ... lOa6GAi2Ew

TUI Airways to add a 4th based aircraft and launch 2 new routes from Cardiff for Summer 2026:

Hurghada - begins 2 May 2026

Faro - begins 21 May 2026

Fuerteventura to be extended to year round

Flights on sale soon

[Humberside]

I suppose it would be different if Wales was part of England but it’s not.

As far as I can tell the relevant legislation is the Subsidy Control Act 2022 that applies across the whole of the UK. I don't think England/Wales/Scotland and the borders between them have any relevance into whether financial support is lawful or not (NI may have some differences). I think this is very much into the realm of the UK Internal Market
https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/20 ... interweave

This link is very clear that Westminster is responsible for subsidy control across the whole of the UK - "DBT is the UK-wide policy owner for subsidy control" (DBT being the Department for Business and Trade).
https://www.gov.uk/government/publicati ... rol-regime

The Subsidy Advice Unit of the Competition and Markets Authority reviewed a subsidy to CWL last year. Bristol and Birmingham are specifically mentioned in their report
https://www.gov.uk/government/publicati ... government

The case list does include some Scottish examples as well (non-aviation)
https://www.gov.uk/search/all?organisat ... dvice-unit

[Clive]

I suppose it would be different if Wales was part of England but it’s not.

As far as I can tell the relevant legislation is the Subsidy Control Act 2022 that applies across the whole of the UK. I don't think England/Wales/Scotland and the borders between them have any relevance into whether financial support is lawful or not (NI may have some differences). I think this is very much into the realm of the UK Internal Market
https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/20 ... interweave

This link is very clear that Westminster is responsible for subsidy control across the whole of the UK - "DBT is the UK-wide policy owner for subsidy control" (DBT being the Department for Business and Trade).
https://www.gov.uk/government/publicati ... rol-regime

The Subsidy Advice Unit of the Competition and Markets Authority reviewed a subsidy to CWL last year. Bristol and Birmingham are specifically mentioned in their report
https://www.gov.uk/government/publicati ... government

The case list does include some Scottish examples as well (non-aviation)
https://www.gov.uk/search/all?organisat ... dvice-unit

Thanks for that. So we see that the Welsh Govt. are trying to improve their airport - because a successful airport is a positive economy driver - but has to jump through hoops to be allowed to put its own money into the facility because primarily BRS doesn’t want to see CWL expand pax ops.

Personally to me this is a good example of why Wales should become an independent country which can then grant capital and other incentives to the businesses in Wales with the goal of reaching their potential, as thriving industries and inward investment are key elements of success, tax revenues and standards of living.

We’ve just seen something similar here with the closure of our only oil refinery which I had better not comment on.