Reform UK, Tories slam Doncaster mayor over airport reopening timeline ‘inconsistency’
Its after documents revealed that freight flights could return to Doncaster Sheffield Airport later than previously claimed by Mayor Ros Jones
Last updated 14th Jan 2026
Mayor Ros Jones is set to face intense pressure from opposition parties when the City of Doncaster Council meets in full next week.
Both the Reform UK and Conservative groups have slammed the Mayor over inconsistencies between her September 2025 prediction to bring freight operations back to Doncaster Sheffield Airport (DSA) in Summer 2026, and a timeline submitted by the council to the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) six days prior.
Mayor Jones told attendees at the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority meeting on September 9, 2025, that freight flights would return to DSA the following year. However, minutes from a council and CAA meeting on September 3, 2025, included a council-proposed timeline for a decision on DSA’s airspace in Q4 2026.
Whilst freight flights could resume without airspace, the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) reports that Doncaster Council believes the CAA would only permit one freight operator without full airspace approval.
Criticism has arisen from opposition parties on Doncaster Council, who feel this was not communicated with them, or the voting public, when Mayor Jones made her optimistic prediction for bringing freight operations back to the city.
Conservative councillors Steve and Jane Cox said: “If the Mayor was aware of the CAA advice of 3 September 2025 when she made her statement on 9 September, does she accept that repeating optimistic claims after a no-confidence motion amounts to a serious breach of public trust? We question her integrity to hold public office.”
Unhappiness with the unclear communications regarding DSA, a Reform UK Doncaster spokesperson issued a similarly frustrated statement.
They said: “This raises serious questions about how this decision was taken and what information members were given at the time. We will be raising this formally at Council.”
The spokesperson refused to expand when asked about which specific DSA decision they were referring to, but urged voters to tune in to the upcoming full council meeting on January 22, 2026.
A Doncaster Labour spokesperson responded: “It’s ironic the Conservatives complaining when in November they voted against plans to reopen the airport. It is clear that they simply do not want Doncaster Sheffield Airport to reopen and be the success that we all know it can and should be.
“Reform locally are in crisis, with no leader following the resignation of former leader Cllr Aston after reporting to have received vitriolic texts bordering on abuse from members of his own party. Reform locally have seen yet more councillors defect and (are) in special measures from national Reform HQ, who have taken over the selection of a new Reform leader locally.”
Commenting on the inconsistencies between Mayor Jones’ freight prediction and the timeline presented to the CAA, a spokesperson for Jones previously said: “Freight operations can commence before full CAA approval… As we have said previously it will not be a case of going from zero to fully operational, it will of course be gradual.
“We have also stated previously that there are interdependencies that are largely out of our control including Airspace and Aerodrome Certification.
“We will of course keep timelines under review as we continue to work to fully reopen Doncaster Sheffield Airport.”
Before Cllr Guy Aston stepped down as Reform UK Doncaster leader in November 2025, he had released a joint statement with the Labour Mayor Jones stating they agreed on a need for external private investment in DSA at the “most opportune time”.
The pair said the council would begin looking at the potential for private investment “within six months” of securing crucial licensing, airspace change process and aerodrome certifications from the CAA, starting with a “soft market test”.
Following LDRS enquiries, the CAA pushed the timeline for an airspace decision back even further, publishing their own timeline on January 6, 2026.
In this timeline, the CAA said it believed a decision on the airspace for DSA would be in May 2027, later than the council’s suggestion in September 2025. The organisation did not answer when the LDRS asked if the decision could be made sooner.