Doncaster Sheffield Airport: Ed Miliband MP supports workers at petition hand-in

On Thursday, airport workers, the GMB union, Louise Haigh MP and Ed Miliband MP joined in London to deliver a petition to save Doncaster Sheffield Airport.

The petition, which had 100,000 signatures, was delivered to the Department for Transport in protest of the planned closure of the airport on 31 October.

Doncaster North MP and Shadow Secretary for Climate Change, Ed Miliband, explained why he chose to support this movement:

“I was proud to join staff from Doncaster Sheffield Airport and GMB Union yesterday to hand in the airport petition. There is a huge amount of support for this campaign in Doncaster and elsewhere. The 125,000 signatures show the strength of feeling.

“It was so disappointing therefore to hear the Secretary of State’s responses to questions in the Commons. She would not even commit to meet with Mayor Oliver Coppard, Mayor Ros Jones and South Yorkshire MPs and kept saying this was a commercial decision for Peel to make.

“This is simply not good enough. She must meet with MPs and our Mayors and act using the powers she has to keep the airport open while a buyer is found. We know there are credible investors and local authorities are happy to cover Peel’s losses while a deal is worked out.

“The government cannot wash its hands of its responsibility. We will not let them do so.”

Miliband, along with Dame Rosie Winterton MP, last week wrote to the Transport Secretary advising for the government to use the Civil Contingencies Act 2004 to stop the airport’s closure due to the air emergency services which are based there.

Shortly before the hand in, the Transport Secretary was in the House of Commons, relinquishing her responsibility for the airport.

She stated that she was “not persuaded” that the act could be used in such a way.

It was also revealed this week that the Mayors of Doncaster and South Yorkshire had found several potential buyers to take over the airport, whom they revealed to owners Peel Group in a letter on Friday.