§ Mrs. DunwoodyTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will refer the issue of the ownership of Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen airports by the same company to the MMC. [54519]
§ Dr. HowellsAny competition concerns arising from the common ownership of these airports should be made to the Director General of Fair Trading, who will investigate.
§ Mrs. DunwoodyTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will list those organisations that (i) opposed and (ii) supported the ownership of the three south-east of England airports by the same company during the last MMC investigation of this issue. [54518]
§ Ms Glenda JacksonI have been asked to reply.
The question of the continued ownership of the three airports by BAA plc was not part of the references by the CAA to the MMC initiating the 1996 quinquennial review. The MMC's consideration of whether there should be a change in the structure of ownership was instead based on whether the three airports had been pursuing a course of conduct for which this would be an appropriate remedy. The CAA references did ask whether there had been courses of conduct which operated or might have been expected to operate against the public interest, and this question was the focus of comment from most of the 87 parties which expressed views. The MMC found that there was no such course of conduct for which a change in the structure of ownership would be an appropriate remedy.