Carney wants private investors to run Vancouver International Airport, among others

Prime Minister Mark Carney says he wants to see private investors operate Vancouver International Airport, along with airports in Toronto, Montreal, and Calgary.

In a keynote address at the investment summit in Toronto on Tuesday, the prime minister said the federal government would retain ownership of the land and assets.

Carney said the goal is to shift federal spending on major airports’ operating costs toward smaller regional airports.

“We will reinvest the tens of billions of dollars of capital that we raise into infrastructure that Canada needs for the next generation,” Carney said in his speech.

“That will mean investing in regional airports, providing better and more affordable regional and remote air connections. It will mean a better passenger experience.”

The prime minister said the proceeds from private investors taking over major airport operations would also go into both “nation-building” projects and local transportation infrastructure projects aimed at easing commutes.

During a fireside chat after his speech, Carney said he wants to hear from investors in airports like London’s Heathrow about how to transfer that model to Canada in a way that benefits both passengers and airport workers.

Deborah Orida, the CEO of PSP Investments — which owns seven airports around the world — asked Carney how he views privatization.

He said governments need to consider the “purpose” of a privatization deal.

“How is that going to make the experience of going to Pearson Airport, Calgary, Vancouver, Montreal, how is it going to make that experience better, safe, more efficient? How is it going to keep costs down?” Carney said.

Carney suggested privatizing operations at large airports could help the federal government cut travellers’ costs at smaller airports.

Carney added the government is looking for “concessions, not privatization” in these airport deals.

The overall goal of the investment summit is to attract $1 trillion in new investment in the Canadian economy over the next five years.

Carney told investors at the summit that Canada is positioning itself as a “safe harbour” for investment on a chaotic global stage.

The prime minister said in May the federal government was open to selling public assets if the proceeds could be used to fund other projects and singled out airports as a possibility.