Murphy Makes £7.8 Million Available for Belfast Airports
Finance Minister, Conor Murphy has announced up to £7.8 million is being made available for Belfast International and Belfast City Airport.
Speaking after the Executive today the Minister said this was in addition to the 12 month rates support already provided to Belfast International Airport, Belfast City Airport and City of Derry Airport.
Murphy, said:The aviation sector has been severely impacted by COVID-19. Our airports and airlines have seen an unprecedented drop in demand with passenger numbers not expected to return to pre-Covid levels in the short-term.
The pandemic has led to dramatically scaled back operations, reduced operating hours and significant financial losses. Airports and airlines are a critical part of our economic structure and it is vital they are supported to ensure connectivity for citizens and freight is maintained.
This support package builds on the recent allocation of £1.23 million to City of Derry Airport and the £3.1 million financial package provided to airports in May.
The funding will be provided to cover the period September – March 2021 in two phases (September –December 2020 and January to March 2021) and is conditional on the airports not returning to profitability during the period.
The 12 months rates holiday for 2020/21 for the Belfast International Airport, Belfast City Airport and City of Derry Airport amounted to rates support of £2.7 million to the airports.
This article was originally published by the Department of Finance Northern Ireland.
