Bosses in charge of the the £800 million Airport City project in Wythenshawe have said the scheme will not be affected by the collapse of one of its partners – construction giant Carillion.
Carillion, which employs 20,000 people and is understood to have public private partnership contracts worth £1.7 billion across the country, went into liquidation with debts of more than £900 million.
The troubled firm is one of five partners in a joint venture to deliver the enterprise zone aimed at stimulating the Greater Manchester economy by creating on-site logistics, manufacturing, office and leisure facilities. The other partners are Manchester Airport Group, Beijing Construction Engineering Group, the Greater Manchester Pension Fund.
There have been concerns that major projects Carillion have been involved with could be at risk, but Airport City director, Lynda Shillaw said the Carillion collapse will not affect the project.
In a statement published in the Manchester Evening News, she said: “The Airport City Joint Venture is focused on working with our investors and occupiers in the planned next phase of delivery to ensure that their requirements continue to be met.
“The current construction of the Airport City development is being undertaken by Beijing Construction Engineering Group International and is not affected by the issues at Carillion.
“Carillion has been a joint venture partner in the Airport City project since its creation in 2013 and we will work with PwC where necessary.”
Wythenshawe MP, Mike Kane, said the collapse of Carillion gave a poor impression of the state of the British economy.
In a parliamentary question to to Cabinet Office minister, David Lidington, he said: “Carillion is a partner in an international joint venture to deliver Manchester airport city enterprise zone in my constituency. Does the Minister agree that what has happened gives a terrible signal to international investors about the state of UK plc?”
Mr Lidington disagreed, replying: “No. There are few countries in which companies do not fail. What is important in this case is that responsibility and financial liability for that failure are seen very clearly to rest with the shareholders and creditors, not with the public purse, and that Government energy is directed towards ensuring that those public services continue to be provided.”