Airline body slams political party manifestos
The transport policies in the election manifestos of all three main political parties have been criticised for as discriminating against flying by failing to meet the UK’s aviation needs.
The attack comes from the Board of Airline Representatives in the UK (BAR UK), which represents more than 90 airlines.
The BARUK board warned that the incumbent government is determined to maintain and increase “exorbitant” levels of Air Passenger Duty that affect the UK and visitors alike.
The Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats both seek to deny additional runway capacity not only at Heathrow, but also at Gatwick and Stansted (see previous TravelMole stories).
“Such policies are no remedy to aircraft stacking over the Home Counties, are highly detrimental to the industry’s efforts to reduce emissions and deny access to global markets for those elsewhere in the UK,” the organisation said.
“Both these parties also plan to impose a tax per plane but, significantly, have not stated how this will be structured. The Labour Government had previously failed when they planned the same thing
“Either way, all three main parties discriminate against flying rather than planning long term solutions for a vital industry.”
Chief executive Mike Carrivick said: “The airline industry feels let down by the manifestos of the main political parties in their lack of vision and commitment in addressing the air travel needs of the UK public, industry and the economy.
“The global competitiveness of the UK is at stake through isolated policies attempting to tax or restrict what is a global industry. Taxation alone can never deliver the benefits that the UK public and industry are demanding.”
BARUK outlined five key requirements on aviation for the next Government:
1. To recognise that a third runway at Heathrow is a priority for the UK economy and that this expansion is not funded by the Government. It is required to resist the increasing threat to jobs and the economy from competing hub airports in other countries.
2. To embrace the White Paper and the Civil Aviation Bill ‘The Future of Air Transport’, that was published in 2003 at immense cost, as the template for the industry for the next 30 years and to refrain from piecemeal tampering and short term measures.
3. To reduce Air Passenger Duty (APD) with immediate effect and to completely abolish APD once the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) commences in 2012.
4. To acknowledge that aviation is a relatively low emitter, contributing just 2.5% of global carbon emissions, and assist an already proactive industry with research and technology incentives to reward further efficiency gains.
5. To proactively seek to bring forward planned improvements in European airspace management which is where the quickest and most significant reductions in carbon emissions can be achieved.
Phil Davies
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