BRUSSELS, Feb. 11, 2004 (PRIMEZONE) -- Virgin Express (Euronext Brussels: VIRE) (OTCBB:VIRGY) considers the decision of the EC with regard to the subsidy scheme at Charleroi Airport as a step in the right direction to help to restore the balance of fair competition in a free market. The Belgian low fare airline looks forward to receiving the full EC report in the hope that the rules will be more clearly defined and that the EC will develop a viable system of inspection and control to prevent future illegality.
Neil Burrows, Managing Director of Virgin Express, emphasised that "Virgin Express fully supports the development of the European regions and considers the rules of fair competition in a liberalised market to be the best guarantee for the protection of the consumer's interests."
However, he points out that "Charleroi is an exceptional case and cannot be compared with many other regional airports that are great distances from the capital city. Charleroi Airport is situated only 40 km from Brussels, which provides the natural market for the carriers serving the main Brussels Airport. Since the subsidies are used to keep fares abnormally low at Charleroi Airport, the illegal system has a detrimental influence on the mechanism of supply-and-demand in the entire Belgian airline travel market."
He added: "While some politicians always stressed the fact that the subsidies were aimed at the development of the Charleroi region and the creation of new jobs, we believe that in the medium and long term continuation of the subsidies could only lead directly to the destruction of jobs at Brussels Airport. There are simply not enough passengers in such a small area to support two airports to capacity and for one of them to be subsidised is just a nonsense."
Virgin Express will closely monitor the situation and hopes that the European taxpayer will demand that any further development at Charleroi will be borne by the airport users and not paid for by taxes discreetly siphoned off from the public purse. The Belgian low fare carrier is proud of its record of offering low fares to consumers for more than seven years from Brussels Airport without participating in any illegal state aid scheme.
Neil Burrows concluded: "The decision of the EC, in so far as it goes, is in the interest of both consumers and the low fare sector. These illegal schemes continue to disadvantage those airlines that keep to the rules of the free market. It has now become clear that those who have defended the Charleroi subsidies are isolated. Virgin Express has always battled against the misuse of tax payers' money in a free market and will continue to do so.
"Virgin Express has been damaged by this illegal activity and is considering all its legal options. When the full EC report is published, we will decide whether we are going to seek compensation for damages incurred during the period that the illegal subsidies were offered to Ryanair. We certainly do not accept that ignorance of the rules is a convincing defence."