City leaders quizzed over decision to cancel Sunderland Airshow for the third time in a row - despite falling Covid cases

Sunderland City Council confirmed earlier this year the popular summer event had been called off for the third year in a row due to uncertainty surrounding the Covid pandemic.

Local authority chiefs said Wearside’s whole events programme would be taken back to the drawing board following a consultation carried out last year.

But Antony Mullen, leader of the city’s Conservative opposition group, queried why the decision was necessary, with Tees Valley set to push ahead with its own rival airshow.

Speaking at Thursday’s meeting of the council’s Scrutiny Co-ordinating Committee, Cllr Mullen said: “Last year when we suggested that the airshow didn’t go ahead because of Covid and the lack of planning that had gone into it by about March, we were mocked and told that it would go ahead, and then it didn’t go ahead because of Covid.

“This year the Tees Valley has an airshow going ahead and we’re told that ours can’t go ahead because of Covid. It just seems a bit unusual.”

The Teesside Airshow is expected to return in June, following a five-year hiatus, and hopes to attract up to 25,000 people.

Jon Ritchie, city council executive director of corporate services, insisted the decision made with the “best available information” at the time.

He added: “It was a judgement call whether it was right at that point in time to commit to something when it was uncertain about what the Covid position would be.

“Tees Valley must have reached a different conclusion to us.”

He also warned about the financial cost if a future surge in Covid case rates saw the event cancelled again.

Mr Ritchie added: “We would have had to commit to certain costs even if the event hadn’t taken place.

“We decided to try and work in different ways to get a wide range of events programmes all over the city.”

It was announced this week Sunderland has been selected to provide the backdrop for the 2022 British Triathlon Grand Final in August, and has also been earmarked to host a World Triathlon Championship Series event in 2023.

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