The European airport industry renewed its
warning about Brexit and its potential impact on European air transport,
connectivity and the wider economy during a public hearing on the subject in
the European
Parliament1 in Brussels.
More than a year on from the UK's vote to leave
the EU, the uncertainty as to what will happen when the UK will exit the EU has
yet to subside. At the same time, the possibility of a cliff edge scenario - of
the UK leaving the EU without a new trading relationship with the bloc being
defined and agreed - cannot be discarded.
In this context, ACI
Europe called on the UK to urgently come up with a
detailed and comprehensive position on Brexit for aviation. This position
should allow the UK to safeguard and further develop its air connectivity with
the EU27 and beyond - recognising this as a cornerstone of the country’s future
prosperity. Continued participation in the Single European Aviation Market
would be the best option.
Speaking in the margins of the hearing, Olivier
Jankovec, Director General ACI Europe said “The clock has been ticking
since March and negotiations already began last month. Yet, we remain
completely in the dark as to what will happen on 1 April 2019 and we have no
idea how long this uncertainty will persist. The fact that the UK has yet to
define a clear and detailed position as to what it wants - not just in terms of
its new relationship with the EU, but also about how to transition there - is
not helping. This only results in precious time being lost and potentially
increases the risk of a no-deal scenario – which should be avoided at all cost,
as it could ultimately result in flights between the UK and the EU being
suspended.”
The uncertainty for aviation is higher than for
other sectors, as are disruption risks relating to the above-mentioned ‘cliff
edge scenario’. That is because WTO rules do not cover air transport
services.
“While falling back on WTO rules would still be
far from ideal and would come with significant costs, it still means businesses
can rely on an alternative legal framework allowing them to keep operating and
plan for contingencies accordingly. That is not the case for aviation. As it
now stands, in the absence of a deal on a transition or the future regime,
aviation would simply fall into a legal vacuum – which if not addressed could
simply mean no flights.”
Accordingly, ACI Europe also called for
aviation to be prioritised as regards the order in which the different sectors
will be dealt with when the time comes – hopefully – to negotiate the new
UK-EU27 relationship. ACI Europe also urged the UK and each of the EU27
countries to look at what alternative legal framework would apply to aviation
in the case of a no deal scenario – as part of their own contingencies.
Earlier this year, ACI Europe released a paper*
outlining the details of the implications of Brexit on European airports and
the existing interdependencies between the UK and its strongest air links to
the EU27.
1 The hearing was organised by the Committee on
Transport and Tourism of the European Parliament and was chaired by Ms. Karima
Delli, Chair of the Committee. The airport sector was represented by John
Holland-Kaye – CEO of Heathrow Airport, Kevin Toland – CEO of daa (Dublin
& Cork airports) and Franck Goldnadel – MD Paris Charles de Gaulle
Airport.
*ACI Europe paper:
*ACI Europe paper:
