Government must prioritise exports and aviation to close UK productivity gap, says MAG CEO

Manchester Airports Group CEO Ken O’Toole welcomed the Centre for Cities’- Cities Outlook 2025- report, urging the Government to prioritise boosting services exports to address the UK’s productivity gap. The report highlights that successful business exports drive stronger economic performance, higher wages, and improved living standards nationwide, emphasising industrial and local growth strategies.

Manchester Airports Group CEO Ken O’Toole emphasised the need for the Government’s Industrial Strategy to focus on high-value sectors like financial services, life sciences, and technology, while recognising the critical role of aviation in supporting export success. He stressed the importance of enhancing the UK’s global connectivity through investment in airports and surface transport, citing research by WPI Economics which shows service industries reliant on international access are set to grow two percentage points faster than the economy, adding £10.6bn over the next decade. O’Toole highlighted that overseas trade expands markets, drives innovation through competition, and attracts foreign investment, boosting productivity, growth, and living standards, aligning with the Centre for Cities’ findings on export-driven economic performance.

Mr O’Toole said

“If it is widely accepted that the Government’s new Industrial Strategy should play to our strengths and harness the potential of exportable services, then its architects must also look at what those sectors need to grow.

“As an island trading nation, we are more reliant on our international air routes than other major economies and if we don’t – as a minimum – maintain current connectivity levels, that £10.6bn could be at risk.

“And if our starting point is the sluggish economic performance we have seen in recent times, then we don’t just want to preserve the global access we already have, but enhance it in order to turbo-charge growth.”

Read Ken O’Toole’s full thoughts here.