Ottawa Poised to Expand Private Airport Investment
The Carney government will announce next steps on Tuesday toward opening up Canada’s airports to more private investment as it continues its two-day investor summit in Toronto, four MPs told The Globe and Mail.
Transport Minister Steven MacKinnon briefed Liberal MPs Monday on the plans in a late-day call, the four MPs said.
Two of the MPs, both of whom were on the call, said Mr. MacKinnon referenced opening up Canada’s four major international airports – Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto and Montreal – to foreign or other private investment.
Two government officials confirmed the call took place and said Mr. MacKinnon spoke to MPs about airport modernization. They said more details will be made public tomorrow.
A separate source from the private sector said they believe the government will lay out Tuesday morning the beginning of the process of opening up stakes in major airports to private investors.
The Globe is not naming the sources, because they were not authorized to disclose private discussions.
Mr. MacKinnon’s office declined to comment.
The federal government currently delegates management of major airports to not-for-profit airport authorities through long-term ground leases.
The government had signalled in its 2025 budget that it would “consider options for the privatization of airports,” and revisited the issue in the spring economic update with few details.
The bill to implement elements of that update contained new measures that give the government more power to obtain financial information from airports.
Canada’s large airports were not mentioned in a 66-page “prospectus” booklet circulated among summit participants. The event began on Monday.
A survey of 3,000 Canadians, commissioned by Australian asset manager IFM Investors ahead of the investment summit, found that 79 per cent of respondents said additional investment in airports is important or needed.
IFM is one of several pension-fund investors that have signalled their interest in investing in Canada’s airports if they are opened to private capital.
One model that Ottawa is believed to have studied closely is Australia’s own experience with privatization. Under that country’s model, the government maintains ownership of major airports, but signs long-term leases with private-sector investors.
Law firm Gowling WLG reported in an article published Monday that as of last year, more than 850 airports across more than 90 countries involve some form of private-sector participation.
Europe leads with roughly 75 per cent of global air traffic to airports with private involvement; North America stands at just 1 per cent.
But the Canadian Labour Congress has urged Ottawa not to include airports on the agenda at this week’s summit. It released a report on Friday outlining economic arguments against airport privatization.
This article was first reported by The Globe and Mail
