Brussels, 06/02/2014 (Agence Europe) - Franck Proust MEP (EPP, France) met European Commission President José Manuel Barroso on the sidelines of the European Parliament's plenary session in Strasbourg on 4 February. Proust is active in defending the interests of regional airports and told Barroso that the draft reform of state aid to regional airports is going in the wrong direction. Proust had already sent Barroso a petition on this issue last year (see EUROPE 10970). He underlined the public service role that small airports play - “they are the tools of connection and of balanced planning of the land. [They are] the engines of growth for numerous regions, in terms of new companies being set up and the creation of new jobs”. The new rules are due be published shortly and Proust called for the revenue arising from regional airports, such as in job creation and growth, to be taken into account when judging the value of a regional airport. “An airport which is not profitable today will not be tomorrow below a million passengers per year”. (MD/transl.fl)