BAA welcomes airports fine powers

People look at the frozen Harbourside in Bristol, where record low temperatures have hit the South West of the UK
12 April 2012

BAA has said it would welcome legislation that would "improve the experience for passengers" as the Government considers new plans to fine airports millions of pounds.

Transport Secretary Philip Hammond said he wanted the air regulators to have new powers after Heathrow ground to a halt during the big freeze last week, ruining the holidays of tens of thousands of people.

A spokesman for BAA said: "We will of course play a full part in the Government's discussions about this year's weather disruption and will make public the findings of our own independent investigation. We welcome legislation designed to improve the experience for passengers at the UK's airports."

Ministers are considering a new airport economic regulation Bill, which would give more powers to impose fines for a wide range of service failures. Under the existing system, fines can be imposed by the CAA for failures like passenger queues at security and cleanliness. The maximum total penalty is said to be 7% of airport charges, resulting in a potential sum of £63 million.

BAA chief executive Colin Matthews announced he would forgo his annual bonus after last week's extended disruption at Heathrow. The firm, which is owned by a Spanish conglomerate, found itself unable to shift snow and ice from runways and aircraft gates, paralysing the gateway for several days.

Prime Minister David Cameron was among those who voiced his frustration at the disruption, and BAA has since launched an investigation into the problems which included flight disruptions at Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Glasgow, as well as Gatwick, London Luton and London City airports and across Europe. The EU Commission slammed the continent's air travel disruption as unacceptable and urged airports to "get serious" about better planning for bad weather.

The Met Office predicted that this will be "by some margin" the coldest December since records began 100 years ago.

The freezing weather wreaked havoc with Britain's popular Boxing Day sporting fixtures, with two Premier League and two SPL matchespostponed, while a total of just nine games survived in the Championship, League One and League Two. All of Boxing Day's race meetings were victims of the weather, including the King George VI Chase at Kempton.

Meanwhile, Northern Ireland bore the brunt of the wintry conditions with Katesbridge in Banbridge, County Down falling to minus 16.9C overnight. The Met Office issued a severe weather warning for widespread ice on roads and pavements in Northern Ireland, as daytime temperatures struggled to get above 4C.

Much of the UK is experiencing a bitterly cold Boxing Day with most areas below freezing. More snow was expected to fall in parts of southern Scotland. Monday will see milder conditions as maximum temperatures are expected to reach 8C in south west England.

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