In aviation, as in all sectors, Australia’s road to recovery must lead to open markets and to profitable private sector businesses, not zombies on taxpayer-funded life support, being at the centre of the economy.
The COVID-19 pandemic has led to extraordinary government support being extended to help as much of the business economy get to the other side as possible. But the Morrison government rightly has rejected calls for taxpayers to bail out the nation’s second airline, Virgin Australia, before it put itself into voluntary administration yesterday morning, saddled with $5.3 billion of debt, its planes grounded by the health crisis and its challenged foreign airline shareholders mostly in no position to put in any more of their own money.
Not even its shareholders would bail out Virgin Australia. AAP
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The Australian Financial Review’s succinct take on the principles at stake in major domestic and global stories – and what policy makers should do about them.
