Doncaster Sheffield Airport: is Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer ready to talk turkey?

Fortune favours the brave: Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has pledged, on-the-record, his support for Doncaster Sheffield Airport today at Prime Minister's Question Time - the airport was proud home to the Vulcan bomber XH558 - 'The Spirit of Great Britain' - here she is runing her engines for the final time at the airport in 2022. (PA)

Leaders

Published 26th Feb 2025, 14:57 GMT

For still crisp – as crisp as the lettuce to which her tenure as Prime Minister was compared – is the promise made by then Tory Prime Minister Liz Truss, who stated in the House of Commons that she would see to it that South Yorkshire’s airport of choice would receive the backing its potential merits, that people remain wary.

But, as the saying goes, it is the hope that kills you, and it is in that spirit that Mr Starmer’s on-the-record commitment to DSA should be received when presented at Prime Minister’s Questions with a teaser about the former RAF Finningley.

The MP for Doncaster Central Sally Jameson is right: Doncaster Sheffield Airport, in there here and now, makes more sense than it ever has. With the right support from central Government, the belief and desire of Doncaster Mayor Ros Jones, coupled with the supportive oversight from South Yorkshire’s Mayor Oliver Coppard, galvanised by aviation and business expertise, DSA can be a beacon catalyst for growth.

Sentimentally at least, Chancellor Rachel Reeves has backed it; Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has backed it; local MPs and business leaders back it. But it is time to talk turkey: will this Government put its money where its mouth is, and back the project in a meaningful way?

The City of Doncaster leaders have gone all-in, clearly convinced that jobs, opportunities and happy-life prospects can be enhanced by the freight, leisure and business connectivity boons the airport offers. The question now is: is it turkey we’re talking, or something more like chickens?