www.Parctel.com: BAA today responded as follows to its referral to the Competition Commission by the OFT and CAA.
Stephen Nelson, Chief Executive of BAA comments,
"I welcome the opportunity, the Competition Commission will have to undertake a thorough, unbiased and rigorous review of the UK airport market and airport charges.
“Our analysis is that the fundamental problem for passengers is lack of capacity, not the structure of BAA. The opening of Terminal 5 next March will begin to address this issue by vastly improving the experience at Heathrow and providing much needed new terminal space. Our intention is then to knock down Terminal 2 and replace it with another brand new terminal, Heathrow East. At Stansted, planning for a new runway and terminal is progressing well, and we expect to submit a formal planning application later this year. These plans amount to nothing less than the transformation of Britain’s biggest airports.
“Putting BAA in the dock for a complex set of problems – with deep legacy causes – will not help solve them. As well as tackling the immediate issue of queuing times, we are ready to make major, long-term investments in British airports, that will free the travelling public from congestion and provide a good experience at our airports, all for a few extra pounds per passenger. But to achieve this, we need a strong and united BAA. We have the balance sheet scale to finance these projects efficiently and retain the unrivalled expertise in planning and building new airport facilities on time and on budget. We look to the Competition Commission to deliver the right regulatory system and sensible financial incentives necessary to deliver these plans for passengers.”
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