Doncaster Sheffield Airport: Mayor fears Peel are simply “going through the motions” with negotiations

He confirmed that a significant offer has been made to buy Doncaster Sheffield Airport, but he fears that airport owners Peel Group will still refuse to sell.

It comes during the ongoing winding down of operations at the airport, with the last flights for the foreseeable future taking place this week.

Mayor Coppard said: “We were forced into the relatively unusual step of both finding and introducing investors to Peel. But while we stand ready to support however and wherever we can, those negotiations are now ‘bilateral’ – meaning they are taking place directly between Peel and those groups and consortia seeking to take over DSA.

“However, I am more than happy to confirm the media reports that a significant offer has been tabled by one of those investors.

“My fear from the outset of these negotiations – shared by many people reading this statement, I know – is that Peel remain committed to closing down DSA, and are simply going through the motions when engaging with potential investors. Their immediate response to the offer from one of the interested groups does little to allay those fears.

“Rather than seeking to dismiss that offer out of hand, I am once again urging Peel to more positively and proactively engage in negotiations with the private sector bidders keen to invest in DSA. I am pleased to be joined in that call by Doncaster’s MPs, Doncaster’s Mayor and even the new Secretary of State for Transport, Mark Harper MP.

“The best outcome for our airport, our community and even for Peel themselves, is to be found through a proper negotiation undertaken in good faith without the short-term, artificial timescales and imminent threat of closure currently in place.

“I am deeply frustrated that it is too late for those people and businesses who have already left, transferred elsewhere or moved on. But it is not too late for Peel to stop the closure and wind-down of DSA, engage properly with the existing bidders and proactively work with us to keep our airport operational while a deal can be agreed.”