Glasgow Airport boss ‘no’ to noise levy
06.09.08
Glasgow Airport's new boss has rejected calls from flight-path residents for a £1 levy from passengers to be donated to local causes to compensate them for the 'noise nuisance' they suffer, the Evening Times reports.
People in Clydebank made the demand earlier this week to compensate them for what they described as their ‘daily nightmare’. They want a share of BAA profits - possibly coupled with the £1-per-passenger flyover charge - to be put into a community fund.
But Amanda McMillan, the airport's new managing director, says those who argue for the levy are ‘mistaken’. She told the newspaper: ‘I cannot agree to any action that jeopardises the future of Glasgow Airport or the many thousands of jobs it supports.’
She believes any curbs on the airline industry's freedom to fly, or any bid to add to its costs, would only damage the airport and the Scottish economy. In an open letter to the Evening Times, she said: ‘The collapse last week of Glasgow-based Zoom Airlines underlines the precarious nature of the industry.’
Mrs McMillan said that the airport supports more than 5000 local jobs and sustains a multi-million pound tourist industry. She said: ‘At a time when airlines are struggling with record fuel prices and the effects of the credit crunch, the suggestion Glasgow Airport should unilaterally impose restrictions on airlines - or add to their costs - in an effort to curb aircraft noise, is a matter of deep concern.'
Mrs McMillan added that a Civil Aviation Authority study last year showed that, despite growing passenger numbers, the airport was quieter now than at any time in almost 20 years.
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