Government Help

[Ren Hoëk]

I see billionaire Branson has received his government help... £75m going to airlines involved in the repatriation of Brits abroad, still RM is expected to continue operating at huge additional expenditure with no help or support from the govt.

The £75m is to charter flights to bring home stranded Britons. Virgin is one of the airlines involved but paying them to provide a service is hardly a bail out. It’s like saying the letter from the Prime Minister to every home is government help for Royal Mail.

That's a very expensive flight. How many are they bringing back? and for that price I hope they are travelling first class.

Why does it matter about the cost if you had family stranded somewhere would you complain about the cost of bringing them home.

These people stranded abroad have already paid the airlines for the their flights home... so is it really going to cost Billionaire Branson and the other airlines an additional £75m to fly them back home?

Yes - if you insist on empty flights to those countries and then nearly empty flights coming back in some cases. Also, it would be both environmentally unsound and financially disastrous if the government insisted the same airline that they are booked with flew them back. Should the airline's profit from this ---- No, but the government priority is to get those people back to do so they have to cover the costs.

To add to that Terrier. Airlines operate on incredibly thin margins. The chances are if these planes are flying out empty and returning only a quarter/half full then they will almost definitely be losing money. I remember reading somewhere once that airlines only make $4 in profit for every passenger carried. Planes and then a fleet of planes are incredibly expensive and it takes a very long time to make a return on capital expenditure. Add in fuel, maintenance, staff. airport fees etc and you can start to understand why.

What's worse is that oil is currently cheap and airlines cant take advantage of that saving with the current crisis ongoing.

[Seymour Buts]

I have a garden and a life.

Can't believe people would rather be at home. I'm doing as many hours as I can currently simply to get out the house. I'm bored stupid currently. There's nothing to do. Least we're allowed to actually see the sun, and interact (two metres) away with other human beings while we're working.

I hate gardening and have a life, currently on hold like virtually every bugger elses.

[nuns]

on todays news he said any problems with companies not doing what they are meant too, for people to contact him

michael.gove.mp@parliament.uk