Part of 1. Questions to the Minister for Climate Change – in the Senedd at 1:42 pm on 11 January 2023.
Deputy Minister, without a doubt, Cardiff Airport has been a financial drain on the taxpayer. It was bought by the Welsh Government for £52 million in 2013, and valued at only £15 million in 2021. It has continuously seen a pre-tax loss for every period since its takeover, and has required millions of pounds of taxpayers' money in the form of grants and debt repayments to remain operational. Passenger numbers have fallen by 53 per cent since 2019. Cardiff Airport requires a clear, effective and comprehensive strategy for growth to enable it to thrive as an international hub—a strategy that requires vision and entrepreneurial savvy that your Government clearly lacks. And I'm very sorry to say this, but we do actually now need a plan in place, put in place by you, to actually get some confidence for us, as well as the public, in relation to Cardiff Airport. So, Deputy Minister, my final question is: do you agree that your ownership of Cardiff Airport has proved a woefully inept use of taxpayers' money, and that the best solution right now is to remove the dead hand of the Welsh Government and return Cardiff Airport to the private sector, where it rightfully belongs?