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The Economist – David Starkie
Latest Publication
A fresh perspective on how airports really work – not just as infrastructure, but as complex business platforms shaped by markets, policy and evolving economic circumstances.
This book challenges traditional assumptions about airport economics and offers a deeper understanding of regulation, pricing, and investment decisions that influence global aviation.
Airport Enterprises: An Economic Analysis
by David Starkie
ISBN (Paperback): 978-1-7394918-0-2
ISBN (eBook): 978-1-7394918-1-9
Publications, Research & Commentary
Independent writing and commentary on economics, aviation markets, housing and infrastructure policy.
This site brings together books, essays and ongoing analysis exploring regulation, competition and public decision-making.
Latest Articles & Publications
Hidden Cargoes – Conference Presentation
“The presentation was delivered at the annual international research meeting, held under the auspices of the German Aviation Research Society at Cranfield University on 11–12 June 2026. The conference highlights key research findings and perspectives on contemporary developments in aviation.”
Unintended consequences: the anti-growth ‘Mansion Tax’
The government has a wretched track record when it comes to measures stimulating the economy, (although its predecessor was little better). Another measure that risks damaging growth, is waiting in the wings; the inelegantly titled High Value Council Tax Surcharge (HVCTS) announced by the old Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, in 2025, and due to come into…
The Residential-Property Tax Trap
The Residential-Property Tax Trap Property taxes are flavour of the month in the lead-up to the Chancellor’s late November budget with much discussion taking place of how a change in the way property is taxed could make a significant contribution to the budgetary black hole Ms Reeves is aiming to fix to get Britain growing…
Could HS2’s route be put to better use?
Flying to Scotland from Southampton on a fine day recently, my eye soon picked up the brown streak across southern central counties that is the route of HS2. Earth works are almost complete, and much concrete poured, but train track and associated paraphernalia are yet to be installed. It will be several years before the…
Gravy-Trains
Railways as we know them are 200 years old this year. An invention in which Britain takes much pride and about which, no doubt, the nation will reminisce as the year progresses. Yet, one feature that we can be certain of, the technology is no longer cheap, if indeed it ever was such; today Britain’s…
Regional economic disparities across the UK are proof of a failure of policy
The existing economic framework of the United Kingdom begs an important question. Does it comply with critical criteria laid down in the seminal 1960s work of Robert Mundell on optimal currency areas (OCAs). Mundell’s suggested that if shocks, both endogenous and exogenous, emerged at a regional level, differentials in the market price of factors of…
Why Passenger Aviation’s Carbon Emissions Are Likely Overstated
Over 40 years ago, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) established its technical Committee on Aviation Environmental Protection (CAEP). Today, CAEP has completed at an international level twelve cycles of debate, recommendations and policy revisions[1]. Indeed, aviation was the first industrial sector attempting to tackle environmental issues on a global scale: a point unfortunately overlooked…
Life in the Fast Lane – Country Life Article
“This article was published in Country Life magazine in October 2019 to mark the 60th anniversary of the opening of the M1 motorway. David Starkie reflects on Britain’s early motorway age, the optimism surrounding new road technology, and the wider impact of the M1 on travel, society and the economy.”
About the Author
David Starkie
Micro-economist
Who is David Starkie?
David specialises in the application of micro-economics to public policy issues, in which he has outstanding international and domestic experience and is known for his frequent iconoclastic viewpoint.
Over a quarter of a century, he advised numerous House of Commons Select Committees for inquiries covering a broad range of subjects, including the redevelopment of London Docklands, expenditure on transport, the motor vehicle industry, together with a number focused on aviation. During the 1970s, he was asked by the UK ODA to advise the governments of Argentina and Chile and later became adviser for the World Bank-funded Argentine National Transport Plan. In 1975, he was appointed Deputy Director General of Transport for the State of Western Australia and, later in Australia, Professorial Fellow at the University of Adelaide’s economics department during which time he advised state and Federal government inquiries. His private sector career since 1985 has encompassed executive directorships of UK and US economic consultancies.
David has given expert testimony in a number of court proceedings, including the New Zealand High Court, and in the UK and Ireland. Reflecting his earlier research in environmental economics, during much of the 1990s he advised the European Commission prior to ICAO’s CAEP III and CAEP IV meetings, determining worldwide aircraft noise standards. David also assisted the European Commission and New Zealand Commerce Commission on competition-related issues. In the UK, he was appointed to the CAA’s panel of experts for a NATS price cap review and for assessing the framework used to analyse airport competition.
He was appointed to act on behalf of the British Government in remedial proceedings following the dispute between the US and British governments over access to Heathrow Airport. David also played a significant role in the initial UK Private Finance Initiative (PFI), assisting project bidders. Following seminal writings on rail privatisation, he advised the UK Treasury and Department of Transport on strategic options for privatising British Rail. For OFTEL the regulator, he worked on telecom interconnection issues. He also developed niche expertise in competition issues associated with private education, advising the UK OFT on its schools’ cartel case. His most recent appointment was to the UK Airports Commission’s Expert Advisory Panel.
David has held visiting scholar or professorial positions at universities in Canada, Australia, Germany and lectured at the World Bank. He has also been external examiner for numerous universities including Oxford and LBS. He is a former Associate of the Institute for Fiscal Studies and American Bar Association, former editor of the Journal of Transport Economics and Policy and member of the Royal Economics Society.
From the Writings
Aviation Markets
