Flying to Alderney immediately costs more and will rocket next year as P&R looks to reign in subsidy

Thursday 14 November 2024

Alderney air fares will immediately go up £5 and then rise again well in excess of £25 on the Southampton link to control taxpayer spending on the routes.

The subsidy for 2024 was meant to cost up to £2m., but is heading to be £600,000 more than that.

To bring things back under control, Policy & Resources has announced that fares on all Alderney routes will increase by £5 one way with immediate effect.

From January, the target subsidy will also be cut to £1.5m meaning even more expensive fares.

To achieve this, a further fare increase of between £25-£30 one way is needed, if applied across all routes, P&R said, although it has directed they were applied primarily to the Alderney-Southampton route.

"Our Committee appreciates that these increases in fares, while necessary for the reasons outlined, will not be welcomed by the community in Alderney," said Deputy Jonathan Le Tocq, Minister for External Affairs.

"It's important that we strike the right balance between the cost of the subsidy on the taxpayer and the cost for those using the service.

"For 2024 this balance was outlined in the contract, with the target of a £2m subsidy, however, with this having increased by £600,000 it's only right that we now take action to bring this back in line with the original target.

"In addition, we are all aware of the financial challenges facing our Bailiwick, and as such we have a responsibility to pursue future savings, as directed by the States.

"A reduction in subsidy of £500,000 is, we believe, appropriate and proportionate given the circumstances. We have sought to place a higher burden on fares between Alderney and Southampton to ensure we offer some protection to the Alderney-Guernsey route."

Before making these changes, the committee, which has responsibility for changes in fares as part of this contract, has sought the view of Aurigny.

It has also written to Alderney's Policy & Finance President to explain the position.

Awful news coming out of P&R.

Alderney major fare increases.
- No consultation with SoA
- MoJ must be made aware of the negative impacts on community + business
- No impact assessment undertaken before making increases
- Forensic analysis of the Aurigny Accounts needed https://t.co/cSvICo4uKY

— Alex Snowdon (@AlexSnowdon5) November 14, 2024

Initial reaction from politicians in Alderney has been negative, as predicted by Deputy Le Tocq.

States Member Alex Snowdon - who also sits in the States of Guernsey as one of Alderney's two representatives, has described it as "awful news".