COUNCIL CHIEF BACK THE MANCHESTER AIRPORT DECISION TO BUY GATWICK: MF AIRPORT PARKING

Bolton Council leader Cliff Morris has welcomed the possibility that the Manchester Airports Group could buy Gatwick Airport .

MAG, which is privately owned by the 10 Greater Manchester local authorities including Bolton, and operates Manchester, East Midlands, Bournemouth and Humberside Airports, is the second-largest UK-based airport operator. According to a report by the BBC yesterday, it could be interested in buying Gatwick Airport, should BAA be forced to sell the hub.

Gatwick Airport is owned by BAA, but the Competition Commission has said it is concerned that the Spanish-owned company also owns London's other two biggest airports, Heathrow and Stansted, and in August may decide to force them to sell one of them. Gatwick is seen as the most likely airport to be offloaded, with a possible price tag of £2 - £3 billion.

MAG's chief executive Geoff Muirhead told the BBC that he would consider buying if BAA did put the airport on the market. He said: ‘We would be interested in any assets that come up, on the premise that we feel we could improve the performance of the group on the back of it, at a price that was sensible.'

Councillor Morris, who is Bolton's representative on the MAG shareholders' committee, said owning Gatwick and improving the area's links with the South could be good news for the region. He said: ‘We have to look at all the options and if Gatwick becomes part of the group it could be very good for Manchester.'

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