Row over cancellation of Sunderland Airshow as Conservatives and Labour clash over decision

Sunderland City Council announced in October 2022 that the popular event would not be returning this year and there were no plans to reintroduce it in the future.

They blamed the decision on a number of factors, including cost, with council leader Cllr Graeme Miller citing the ‘global climate emergency’ and saying the city’s desire to be carbon neutral by 2040 made it ‘all the harder to justify events such as the airshow.’

Data ‘was not collected at the time’

But now Sunderland Conservatives have condemned claims that the cancellation was motivated by environmental concerns, citing a reply from Assistant Director for Economic Regeneration Catherine Auld to an enquiry from Tory councillor Dominic McDonough, asking when details of the event’s environmental impact would be published.

It confirms such analysis would require data ‘which was not collected at the time and is not held by the council’ but adds: “As we estimate that aircraft collectively travelled over 25,000km from bases across the UK and within Europe to reach the last Sunderland Air Show in 2019, with a flying programme extending over three days, it’s clear that as we aim to be carbon neutral by 2030 as a council and by 2040 as a city, continuing to deliver an airshow within the context of these goals is not sustainable.”

It also refers to the cost of staging the airshow and the fact it would eat up almost all of the council’s events budget, which has been cut ‘due to reduced central government funding’.

Conservative culture spokesman Coun Sam Johnston said the e-mail proved claims the airshow was cancelled for environmental reasons were ‘a myth’.

‘The council should come clean’

“The decision to cancel the airshow was motivated by money – and particularly the need to reallocate funding to the British Triathlon event taking place in the summer,” he said.

“This is a political decision to prioritise one event over another and the council should come clean about that, not try and hide behind the guise of environmentalism.

“This has been one big dishonest PR stunt that has unravelled under scrutiny from Conservative councillors.”

But council leader Coun Graeme Miller hit back, insisting the airshow was incompatible with the aim of being carbon neutral by 2040.

‘A party utterly devoid of leadership’

“Add to that increasing operational challenges associated with delivering the event due to the constraints of the military; the fact that it is – invariably – shortened by inclement weather; years of funding cuts by this Conservative Government which mean we have to prioritise essential services; feedback from our residents; and the opportunity we have to reposition the city with a range of brilliant new venues springing up in Sunderland thanks to our work attracting unprecedented investment, and a range of other considerations, we formed the view it was time for a fresh look at our events,” he said.

"Naturally, the Conservatives will shout from the side-lines, but the reality is that they have absolutely no idea how balanced, sensible decisions are taken in council, because they are a party that is utterly devoid of leadership and looking more and more desperate by the day."