![\"Toronto](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Untitled-design-2026-05-06T170015.014-1-copy.jpg\")
Courtesy of GTAA<\/p>\n\t\t\tCourtesy of GTAA<\/p>\n
Mark Carney\u2019s government could announce potential steps to privatize Canada’s airports as early as September\u2019s Canada Investment Summit, according to the public affairs director at an Australian infrastructure fund.<\/p>\n
Gian\u2011Carlo Peressutti, executive director of public affairs, policy and strategy at IFM Investors, made the remarks to The Financial Post<\/a> on Wednesday.<\/p>\n IFM Investors is a major Australian infrastructure fund aiming to buy up to $10 billion in Canadian assets over the next decade.<\/p>\n \u201cI do think the government can announce some very concrete things that will point the way to absolute investment opportunities,\u201d Peressutti told The Financial Post. The summit<\/a>, where Carney plans to convene the world\u2019s largest investors, would be a logical venue to outline a path toward airport privatization.<\/p>\n IFM, which manages more than $250 billion, will lead Australia\u2019s delegation in Toronto and hopes to demonstrate models it has used to acquire 17 airports globally. One example is Manchester Airports Group, jointly owned by Manchester City Council and IFM\u2011managed funds, which is a structure designed to ease privatization concerns by retaining a public stake.<\/p>\n However, privatizing major airports such as Toronto Pearson would require governance changes and possibly legislation, and public opinion may be a hurdle: a recent Nanos survey for Bloomberg News<\/a> found a slim majority opposed to private investment in airports.<\/p>\n Higher costs for travellers<\/p>\n Critics say privatizing airports would push up travel costs for passengers.<\/p>\n Airports charge airlines operating fees to cover their costs, and those fees ultimately get passed on to travellers, Rod Sims, former chair of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, told CBC in May<\/a>.<\/p>\n Those charges rose \u201cmassively\u201d after Australia privatized its airports, he added.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat happened in Australia is yes, the taxpayer wins because you get more money, but the travelling public loses big time, over time,\u201d Sims said.<\/p>\n Sims warned that privatizing a monopoly with the goal of raising revenue creates long\u2011term risks for travellers.<\/p>\n \u201cWhenever a government is privatizing a monopoly and their motivation is to make money, that is just a shocker. You know, the users of that monopoly are going to get it in the neck for years to come. You’ve got to privatize because you think it might be more efficient.\u201d<\/p>\n He said any move to privatize airports would need strong consumer protections to prevent fees from spiralling. A price cap tied to inflation \u2014 with a mechanism for operators to request increases \u2014 is one model he suggested.<\/p>\n \u201cI can’t give a view on whether you should or shouldn’t privatize in Canada, but do it with your eyes open,\u201d he advised.<\/p>\n