Spaceport Cornwall & Airport Newquay get £7.8 million for Infrastructure Update

Spaceport Cornwall, on the basis of Airport Newquay, will get £7.8 million for an upgrade before the next G7 summit. The summit will be held at Carbis Bay, St Ives. The airport, owned by the local council, has been offered the government funds as the world leaders are preparing to fly to the summit. 

Will Spaceport Cornwall Benefit from the Funds?

According to the official report, the government funds will be used to upgrade aircraft to carry world leaders and land them at Cornwall. No other details have been made public, so it is unclear if the spaceport proposed on the basis of Newquay airport will get any support. As a reminder, Spaceport Cornwall is one of the few horizontal launch sites proposed in Scotland. An already developed airport infrastructure is highly beneficial for this project.

To date, it has already been confirmed that Cornwall will host the G7 summit in June 2021. Currently, the Group of Seven includes countries with the most developed economies – France, the US, Canada, Germany, Italy, Japan, and the UK. Until 2014, Russia used to be a part of the same group, called G8 at the time. However, after its activities in Crimea, Russia left the group. 

This year, the UK will be represented by Prime Minister Boris Johnson. The group positions itself as the community of values and represents over half of the global net wealth. The group’s focus is advocating freedom, human rights, democracy, and ensuring sustainable economic development. 

According to Cornwall council, current airport infrastructure cannot support aircraft needs that would be used to carry G7 members. That is why the Government’s Cabinet Office has offered almost £8 million to upgrade this infrastructure. 

Council leader Julian German stressed the urgency of the works in question. Should any additional funds be required, the council’s capital programme will have to be notified. 

The G7 will meet and reside in Carbis Bay Hotel. Media representatives will be based at the National Maritime Museum in Falmouth. Ultimately, attention from the press and the world leaders may become a deal-breaker for Spaceport Cornwall construction.