Stansted Airport welcomed over two million more passengers in 2014 than in the previous 12 months, with 19.98 million passengers passing through making it the UK’s fastest growing airport.

The 12 per cent annual increase ensured it was the busiest year for Stansted since 2008.

The year finished on a high as monthly passenger traffic in December grew by 18.5 per cent to over 1.56 million - almost 250,000 more passengers than in the same month in 2013.

The traditional Christmas getaway helped make the month the busiest December at Stansted since 2007.

The volume of cargo passing through the airport continued its upward trend as December volumes increased by 30.3 per cent over the same month last year.

Total cargo tonnage for 2014 grew by 6.9 per cent to over 226,000.

Andrew Harrison, Stansted managing director, said: “The past 12 months have been such an exciting period for Stansted, our staff and the millions of passengers who have used the airport.

“The significant growth in passenger numbers - including our busiest December and Christmas getaway for seven years - has seen Stansted once again become the fastest growing airport in the UK, driven by the improved commercial relationships we have successfully developed with our airline partners.

“We have made excellent progress on our £80 million terminal upgrade and we are now well into the final phase of this project as we complete the remaining bars, restaurants, shops and a new seating area in the departure lounge.

“This is geared towards transforming airport services and facilities and driving greater customer improvements.

“We now look forward to building on the success of the last year during 2015 and attracting even more passengers, airlines and routes to Stansted.

“Flybe will soon launch new services across the UK and, in the summer, Thomas Cook will be launching long-haul flights to the USA and Mexico.

“The coming months will also see the opening of our new Escape passenger lounge in the terminal.

“We are determined to drive the campaign for faster and more reliable rail links between London and the region with our partners along the London-Stansted-

Cambridge corridor and will continue to highlight to the Airports Commission and Government the important role Stansted will play in the UK’s aviation system over the next ten-15 years, and the critical importance of making best use of this existing capacity.”