| Cardiff Airport's 'unlawful' handout defended at Bristol Airport tribunal Posted by Chris from Nailsea at 17:05, 10th February 2026 |     |
From the BBC:
Cardiff Airport's 'unlawful' handout defended at tribunal
Cardiff Airport has been owned by the Welsh government since 2013
Lawyers have defended a £205.2m Welsh government subsidy for Cardiff Airport during a competition appeal tribunal.
George Peretz KC said the "ambitious" funding was legal and would deliver "much wider benefits to the Welsh economy".
Bristol Airport has asked the competition appeal tribunal to quash the subsidy, arguing that it was "unlawful" and risked distorting the market.
The tribunal's decision is expected to be reserved until a later date.
Peretz said the subsidy did not amount to a rescue deal, saying the funding "goes way beyond the survival, or not, of Cardiff Airport", adding that the government was proposing "something much more ambitious, and to deliver much wider benefits to the Welsh economy". He rejected claims that government ministers had not properly considered whether Cardiff Airport should be classified as an "ailing or insolvent enterprise" before awarding the subsidy.
Referring to Bristol Airport's claim that the subsidy equated to the taxpayer contributing £71.50 per passenger, Peretz said: "Those calculations don't work." He claimed that Bristol had failed to account for additional spending by passengers travelling through Cardiff Airport.
Around half of the £205.2m subsidy is allocated for route development, which Bristol Airport argued could be used to unfairly entice airlines to Cardiff and distort the competition between the two airports. But the Welsh government's barrister said it was common practice for airports to provide up-front payments to airlines. "If airports want to attract airlines, this is the game they have to get in to", he said, adding that all airports had to be "prepared to offer these front-loaded incentives" and did so on a commercial basis.
Plans for a 10-year subsidy for Cardiff Airport worth £205.2m were formally announced by the Welsh government in April 2025.
Ministers have already allocated £20m to be spent during the current financial year, with the full amount phased over 10 years. The government said new maintenance facilities, hangers and cargo capacity would be supported by the deal.
The tribunal has heard that around half the total subsidy would be allocated towards route development. The Welsh government said these routes would concentrate on global hubs and destinations that could support economy growth.
Bristol Airport filed an appeal with the competition appeal tribunal in July 2025 after the full details of the subsidy were published.
On Monday the barrister for Bristol Airport, Ewan West KC, said the government's plans for Cardiff Airport should be quashed. "We say the subsidy should be declared unlawful," Mr West said, adding that Bristol was "not seeking to drive Cardiff from the market" but any competition "must be fair and lawful".
During the hearing Bristol Airport argued that the subsidy amounted to the taxpayer paying £71.50 per passenger, and that the Welsh government had failed to properly consider whether Cardiff Airport was an "ailing or insolvent enterprise" under subsidy law.
The tribunal, chaired by Ben Tidswell, has sat for two days in Cardiff and is expected to reserve its judgement until a later date.
Cardiff Airport has been owned by the Welsh government since 2013
Lawyers have defended a £205.2m Welsh government subsidy for Cardiff Airport during a competition appeal tribunal.
George Peretz KC said the "ambitious" funding was legal and would deliver "much wider benefits to the Welsh economy".
Bristol Airport has asked the competition appeal tribunal to quash the subsidy, arguing that it was "unlawful" and risked distorting the market.
The tribunal's decision is expected to be reserved until a later date.
Peretz said the subsidy did not amount to a rescue deal, saying the funding "goes way beyond the survival, or not, of Cardiff Airport", adding that the government was proposing "something much more ambitious, and to deliver much wider benefits to the Welsh economy". He rejected claims that government ministers had not properly considered whether Cardiff Airport should be classified as an "ailing or insolvent enterprise" before awarding the subsidy.
Referring to Bristol Airport's claim that the subsidy equated to the taxpayer contributing £71.50 per passenger, Peretz said: "Those calculations don't work." He claimed that Bristol had failed to account for additional spending by passengers travelling through Cardiff Airport.
Around half of the £205.2m subsidy is allocated for route development, which Bristol Airport argued could be used to unfairly entice airlines to Cardiff and distort the competition between the two airports. But the Welsh government's barrister said it was common practice for airports to provide up-front payments to airlines. "If airports want to attract airlines, this is the game they have to get in to", he said, adding that all airports had to be "prepared to offer these front-loaded incentives" and did so on a commercial basis.
Plans for a 10-year subsidy for Cardiff Airport worth £205.2m were formally announced by the Welsh government in April 2025.
Ministers have already allocated £20m to be spent during the current financial year, with the full amount phased over 10 years. The government said new maintenance facilities, hangers and cargo capacity would be supported by the deal.
The tribunal has heard that around half the total subsidy would be allocated towards route development. The Welsh government said these routes would concentrate on global hubs and destinations that could support economy growth.
Bristol Airport filed an appeal with the competition appeal tribunal in July 2025 after the full details of the subsidy were published.
On Monday the barrister for Bristol Airport, Ewan West KC, said the government's plans for Cardiff Airport should be quashed. "We say the subsidy should be declared unlawful," Mr West said, adding that Bristol was "not seeking to drive Cardiff from the market" but any competition "must be fair and lawful".
During the hearing Bristol Airport argued that the subsidy amounted to the taxpayer paying £71.50 per passenger, and that the Welsh government had failed to properly consider whether Cardiff Airport was an "ailing or insolvent enterprise" under subsidy law.
The tribunal, chaired by Ben Tidswell, has sat for two days in Cardiff and is expected to reserve its judgement until a later date.
