International Air Transport Association executive Nick Careen said the government’s plan to lease Canada’s four largest airports to private investors will lead to higher fees for airlines, making travel more expensive for customers. (The Globe and Mail)

Talking point: The government currently owns and collects rents from the airports and non-profit agencies run them. Under the new model, private investors will pay Ottawa for the right to operate the airports and collect the profits they generate. Prime Minister Mark Carney said the government expects to raise tens of billions of dollars through the deals. He said the arrangements will “improve passenger services and find efficiencies,” and argued that travel costs would go down. Careen told The Globe and Mail, however, that international examples suggest otherwise. Airports that were privatized in Australia, for example, raised airline fees by about AU$1.6 billion between 2006 and 2016, the country’s competition regulator found. Details of the plan haven’t been decided. Ottawa has reportedly hired CIBC and Morgan Stanley to advise it on the deals.

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