National Assembly Chairman: "Encourage private investment in airports"

(Dan Tri) - Pointing to the fact that the State still invests mainly in aviation infrastructure, leading to a budget burden, the National Assembly Chairman suggested that breakthrough regulations are needed to encourage private investment in local and specialized airports.

On the morning of October 22, National Assembly delegates discussed in their respective groups the draft Law on Civil Aviation of Vietnam (amended).

The draft law has 11 chapters and 109 articles, a 33% reduction compared to the current law, but according to National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man, it is still too long. The Chairman suggested that the law should be drafted with a focus on innovative thinking, including issues within the framework of the National Assembly's regulations, while leaving the rest to the Government to issue decrees for specific guidance. The Ministry of Construction will issue circulars for management.

The Chairman of the National Assembly stated that the country currently has 22 airports, including 10 international and 12 domestic airports, but investment has been very slow, amounting to only about 113,558 billion VND during the 2010-2020 period.

National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man (Photo: Minh Chau).

Therefore, the Speaker of the National Assembly proposed adding groundbreaking provisions to the draft law to encourage private investment and public-private partnership models, especially for local and specialized airports.

"Currently, the State still invests mainly in essential infrastructure, leading to a burden on the budget. Therefore, there is a need for regulations, tax incentives, land incentives, and expedited approval procedures for both domestic and foreign investors; while ensuring equality among airlines in access to air travel and air services," the National Assembly Chairman suggested.

According to the Speaker of the National Assembly, in addition to entrusting the Government with the task of regulating the criteria for selecting investors, a clause on supervision is needed to prevent monopolies.

This draft law inherits the provision that airport operating companies have the right to invest, but according to the Chairman of the National Assembly, it needs to be expanded to mobilize social resources; otherwise, the aviation industry will find it difficult to achieve the goal of having 33 airports by 2050.

Regarding the issues of decentralization, delegation of power, and simplification of administrative procedures, the Chairman of the National Assembly stated that the draft has already decentralized power from the Prime Minister and ministers down to the local level, but it needs to be more thorough by delegating the authority to approve detailed airport plans to provincial People's Committees; reducing the processing time for flight permits from 10 days to 5 days…

Regarding the protection of customer rights, goods, and airline staff, the Chairman of the National Assembly suggested adding conditions on passenger data and security, and encouraging healthy competition by prohibiting the transfer of transportation rights.

Expecting that this draft law will be passed to address the shortcomings and delays of the past 11 years, the Chairman of the National Assembly emphasized that the law, once passed, must ensure modernity, safety, and contribute to the development of the aviation industry in the future.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/thoi-su/chu-tich-quoc-hoi-khuyen-khich-tu-nhan-dau-tu-san-bay-20251022114141687.htm