I am delighted to announce that I have secured a deal with Peel to take Teesside Airport back into public ownership.
This is a deal that will save our airport from closure, a deal that will stop the planned 350-home development, and a deal that delivers on the number one election pledge I made to the people of the Tees Valley.
I will finance the deal using the money devolved to our area from central government. That means zero impact on council tax, zero impact on local authorities, zero impact on public services, and zero impact on local businesses. We have this money from government to spend on our local economic priorities, and having a thriving international airport is your priority - and mine.
But there’s one more thing. While I have agreed a deal, we still need the support of our five Labour local authority leaders. I need them to vote for this deal in January 2019. If they reject my plan to save our airport, our airport could close in 2021. It’s as simple as that.
To read more about the plan, what has been agreed, and how you can help me lobby our local authority leaders, please visit:
